


Going Home

by blossomofsnow65



Category: The X-Files
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-28
Updated: 2019-05-28
Packaged: 2019-10-18 06:39:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 11
Words: 31,399
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17575787
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blossomofsnow65/pseuds/blossomofsnow65
Summary: Someone from Mulder and Scully's past returns, making them wonder if everything that happened to them in the past is true or not. Post MSIV.





	1. Chapter 1

She feels as if she has been walking forever. Two hours, ten hours, two days, a week, a year. But she can't bring herself to stop. No. She has dreamt about this moment her whole life, and now she has a lead; and she will not stop until she sees for herself if this lead is what she wanted for a very, very long time. She must admit, though, that it wasn't easy. For two years she had tried to contact them, and she wasn't going to give up.

The road was long and endless. The long and winding road. She chuckled lightly and hummed that song, hugging herself to keep warm on this cold, January afternoon.

Suddenly, she saw another road to her left and she felt nervous, those stinking butterflies in her stomach more intense than ever. Her breaths are short and fast and she realizes she has quickened her pace, almost running. As she turns left, she swallows nervously and pulls her black hoodie down, her long, brown hair falling from the messy bun she had quickly done.

Reaching the house in the middle of nowhere she swears she can hear the angry cries from a baby. Shit. This definitely isn't it. She starts turning around, but ultimately decides to go with her gut and at least knock on the door and find out if this is where she's supposed to be or not.

Only one car is in the driveway — a freaking Mustang, no less — so she supposes that he's the only one home. Never mind. Just knock on the door anyway.

Reaching the steps to the house, she takes one last look at the Mustang and rolls her eyes. Mid life crisis for sure.

She starts walking up the steps and reaches the door. The baby still cries.

Okay. Deep breath.

Knock, knock.

The baby's cries grow louder and louder as the footsteps towards the door get closer.

A man in his 50's holding a baby in a white, long sleeved onesie with an alien in the middle answers. "Can I help you?"

"Uh... I'm not sure if I have the correct address, I think I don't. Is this the Mulder residence?" She anwers quickly, her voice shaky.

The man bounces the baby to try to get her to stop crying and with a slightly annoyed look answers, "Yes, it is. What can I do for you?"

She's speechless. After all these years, she found them. After years of suffering, the thought of them was the only thing that got her through it, and she was finally here. Her eyes are wide, wide open as she struggles to find words. Yet, he waits for her to speak first.

Finally, she does. "Oh, my God. And are you Mulder? Fox Mulder?"

The baby's cries have calmed down by now, but haven't stopped. He sighs, looks at the baby and then at her. "Yes, I am. Who's asking?"

She smiles relieved. "Oh my God. You have no idea how long I've been looking for you." Her left hand flies to her chest as if to stop her heart from beating at full speed. She stands up straight and speaks again. "Um... I'm looking for Dana Scully. Is she here?"

The baby stops crying and starts patting Mulder's cheeks. He looks at her, narrowing her eyes. "She's at the grocery store. I'm sorry, who are you?" He asks intrigued, as if he's figured it out.

She swallows the huge lump in her throat and takes a deep, shaky breath. "I'm her daughter." Mulder stares at her speechless.

She smiles. "I'm Emily."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scully meets Emily.

Emily sat nervously on the couch with her hands under her thighs. They baby was sitting in front of her in her playpen debating whether to play with the stuffed elephant she was holding in her hand or with her feet; although that didn't stop her from staring at her with curiosity in her big, blue eyes every once in a while.

When Emily broke the news about her identity, Mulder remained standing in front of her, speechless. She had heard and read about some of the X Files that he and Scully had worked on, and she knew that many – if not most – of their cases were more farfetched and unbelievable than what was happening right now. She knew that Mulder believed in things far more unrealistic, but this didn't stop him from looking at her as if she were a ghost.

After what seemed like forever, but she was certain that it had been just seconds, Mulder invited her in. Oh, how badly she wanted to hug him and talk to him and tell him everything she had been through, everything she knows he had been through, everything she knows about him and Scully. Yet, she knew she had to take baby steps. So she walked in cautiously and slowly, making sure not to leave footprints from the mud that the rain from the day before had so kindly left.

Mulder was busing himself in the kitchen and she could hear him talking on the phone. "I don't know what to tell you. But she says she's her, and I so badly want to believe she is, but I don't know. She does look like her, but we've been lied to before so many times, Scully." Emily would turn her head once in a while so she could hear what Mulder was saying, but every time she did, the baby would let out a squeal and would stare at her, as if scolding at her for listening into private conversations. That little precious thing is a smart one, Emily thought.

Having been caught by the baby, Emily stuck to looking around the house – but without turning her head –; books, files, videos, a poster that read 'I Want To Believe'. A picture of Mulder and Scully wearing FBI jackets, a picture of Mulder and Scully on what seemed to be an outing in the woods on one autumn morning, based on Scully's head full of colourful leaves and Mulder's grin, a picture of a smiling Mulder and Scully holding the little nugget sitting in front of her. And then, she saw two pictures that caught her attention: a boy wearing a baseball uniform and holding a baseball hat was smiling to the camera with a smile that reached his eyes. The picture was small compared to the other ones and it was framed in a silver frame. And next to it, there was a picture of her taken on her last birthday, the same smile as the boy's plastered on her face, framed in a golden frame.

"Here you go. Careful, it's hot." Mulder snapped her out of her thoughts as he handed her a cup of tea and sat in front of her. She thanked him and held the cup the heat warming her hands that seemed to never warm. The nugget squealed and waved her arms happily at the sight of him. Mulder returned that action with a smile and a caress of her head. "So… are you really Emily? Or are you something he left as a token of his appreciation?" Mulder set his cup on the table and looked at her square in the eye. He wasn't going to take any bullshit and he wanted her to know. She knew that they had been through a lot, and a 24 year-old showing up at their doorstep 22 years after her 'death' wasn't going to make anything better.

Emily blinked in surprise. "Oh no, no. I am Emily. I know it's hard for you to believe, but I swear I can explain. Trust me, I find it hard to believe sometimes that I'm still here. Surprise!" Emily exclaimed. Mulder sat back and stared at her unamused. "Sorry, I try to lighten the mood when I'm nervous and it doesn't really come out well." Emily glances down at her feet. "I can explain everything if you'd just let me."

Mulder was about to answer when they heard a car approaching the house, the gravel under the tires crunching angrier than ever.

Scully had barely stopped the car before she jumped out and ran towards the door. "Where is she?!" She said as she opened the door, agitated. Emily stood up and smiled at her sheepishly.

"Hi."

"Oh, Emily." She ran to Emily and hugged her so tightly that she thought her eyes were going to pop out of her head.

"I'll go get the groceries from the car." Mulder said as he stepped out.

All three of them sat in awkward silence. Mulder took his place on the chair in front of her once again, while Scully sat next to her with the baby on her lap. The tick-tock of the clock was the only sound filling the silence and it was starting to bother her. "So, who's this little cutie patootie?" Emily asked as she reached her finger out to the baby and she held it tightly.

"Your sister." Scully answered quickly. Unlike Mulder, Scully believed right away that she was standing in front of the daughter she thought she lost. The daughter she knew she had wanted to adopt so badly that she was willing to give up her career, but she never could.

Mulder looked at her in surprise. Sensing this, Scully looked at him but smiled reassuringly. He smiled back.

"She's really cute." Emily said, smiling. "What's her name?"

"Lily." Mulder replied.

"I always wanted siblings. But as you know, it was a little hard for my parents to give me one, even though they wanted so badly. But even if they could, they died. And then I died." Emily was starting to get uncomfortable and she could feel the tension in the room. If she had a knife she could cut that tension in a thousand little pieces. Scully and Mulder glanced at her and she closed her eyes, mentally kicking herself. "I'm sorry. That was insensitive of me."

"Emily makes jokes when she's nervous and uncomfortable. She tries to lighten the mood, but it almost never turns out they way she wants it to." Mulder came to her defence and Scully mouthed an 'oh'. Emily had turned her attention to Lily and softly tickled her tummy with her finger, but she watched Mulder from the corner of her eye and saw him wink an eye at her and smile.

"So, Emily. What brings you here?" Scully said.

"Well, do you have all day? Cause 22 years of explaining will probably make us pull an all-nighter. So you might want to have some caffeine in your system." Mulder and Scully chuckled.

"Of course. I'll start the coffee." Mulder got up and headed to the kitchen. He stopped next to Scully and gave her a peck on the lips. Emily, out of instinct, turned her head. Lily reached out to her and patted her arm as to let her know that Mulder was gone.

"I like your hair. Why did you dye it brown?" Scully asked as she ran her fingers through Emily's hair.

"That's part of the explanation. Don't be hasty and wait for the coffee, Dana. Damn, girl." Emily said jokingly as she rolled her eyes and smiled. Scully nudged her arm and she fell on the empty side of the couch next to her. They laughed softly and Lily joined them.

"Whatever you say, honey."


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happened to Emily?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING! Talks about rape and violence.

Okay. Where to begin? The sun was about to set, and Emily figured that she had about an hour before Lily – her sister as Scully informed her – had her bath, ate, and was put down to sleep. One hour was definitely not enough.

Mulder had changed her tea to coffee now and she stared at the smoke coming from the cup, hoping that a genie or something of the sort would come out and tell her what to say first.

Scully was the one to break the ice. “Emily, what happened? Where were you taken after you…” Scully closed her eyes and when she opened them, she looked at Mulder. Taking in a shaky breath, Scully continued, “after we thought you had passed away.” Scully got up and placed Lily in her playpen again, handing her the stuffed elephant. She stood there for just a few seconds with her back to Emily before turning around and walking back to her.

“I was taken to a foster home, but not under my name. For a few days I was Emma Smith. That is, until someone – an old dude who smelled like cigarettes – came for me, saying that he was my uncle and that he was going to take care of me. I knew, of course, that he was lying, but he even though he smiled at me and reassured me that everything was going to be okay, I was scared of him. He had this look in his eyes that said that he had this power over me, and that if I did anything, I’d be sorry or something. I didn’t make a fuss over it, and the people from the foster home let him take me.” Emily stopped for a minute, remembering her fear from that day as if it was yesterday. No matter how many times she tried to, she would never forget that man.

She could feel Mulder and Scully looking at her, listening intently and waiting for her to continue. Taking a sip of her coffee, she did. “Anyway, obviously he didn’t take me to a beautiful house in the suburbs with his wife and his two daughters as he had told the lady. He took me to this ship or something. I can’t really remember, since he gave me a cookie that tasted funny when I got in the car and everything was blurry after that.”

“Son of a bitch.” Emily heard Mulder mutter and she saw him stare at his feet, his hands folded on his knees. Scully was still looking at her with her lips pursed and she looked as if she was about to cry. When Emily looked back, Scully immediately turned her head to Lily who was throwing her stuffed animal back and forth.

“This ship was something else, though. It had these chambers where people from all ages were kept. I made a friend there. Her name was Sveta. She was around my age, maybe older.”

“Yes, we met her.” Scully said.

“Really?” Emily smiled softly.

“Your mother wasn’t really fond of her, but I was. She came to me with information about abductions.” Mulder continued. Mulder remained with a stoic expression on his face.

“I’d like to see her. Do you know where she is?” Emily asked, feeling a little hopeful and giddy to see an old friend. When Mulder and Scully looked at each other and quickly looked away, she understood.

“Oh. Well. I guess it had to happen sometime. Right?” Emily got lost in her memories she had of Sveta. How they would sometimes escape from their chambers and play hide and seek from their captors. How a terrified Sveta would sneak in to Emily’s chamber and sleep next to her, Emily hugging her and making her feel safe. All this time, she missed her so much.

“So, what happened to you on the spaceship?” Mulder changed the subject. Emily wiped a tear off her face and continued.

“What didn’t happen? They tortured me. I had a bunch of babies. I reached puberty at 12 and had my first baby at 14.” Emily’s voice started to break and tears were ready to fall. She looked up at the roof and then at her picture in order to stop them from falling.

“Oh my God. Having a baby at 14… that’s very dangerous for a teenage girl.” Scully gasped and her hand flew to her mouth. Her other hand reached out to hold Emily’s. She took it and Scully gave it a reassuring squeeze.

Still holding hands, Emily said, “I’m aware. But do you think they cared?” Emily said sadly. “I had my own babies, I had other people’s babies. Tests were made on me. That Cigarette Smoking son of a bitch would just look at me as if I was his very own precious possession. I swear to God, sometimes I think he would stand there next to me and just smile while they...”

“There’s one thing that I don’t understand, Emily.” Scully interrupted. She sighed and sadly remarked, “you were dead. We held a funeral for you.”

Emily smiled sadly. “You thought Mulder was dead, too, didn’t you?” Scully was taken aback by this and opened her mouth to speak. But no words came out. Instead, she started to cry, her mouth trying to cover her sobs.

“I heard your screams.” Emily turned to Mulder. His eyes switched from Scully to her and stared at her in shock. “They tried to keep the chambers soundproof, but some screams are hard to ignore. We were always given a glass of water before going to bed – because that ‘made everything better’ – and one night I was so thirsty that I drank it all. We weren’t allowed to leave our chambers unless our captors needed us, or unless we were allowed to go to the bathroom. And that night I needed to pee real bad. Somehow, I managed to get out and started walking towards the bathroom. And that’s when I saw you.” She told Mulder. Mulder stared back at her.

“It was so hard to see you being tested and naked and calling out her name desperately,” Emily nodded towards Scully. “I wanted to go in there and hold your hand and hug you, just like I did with Sveta when she was scared. Of course, I got caught and then punished. I got punished real. Bad.” Emily saw silent tears rolling down Mulder’s cheeks and Scully gave her hand another squeeze.

“Oh, Mulder.” Scully got up and walked towards him. She got down to his level and hugged him by his shoulders. Mulder was now crying out loud and Scully was crying with him. His head was resting on his hands, his elbows on his knees.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t want to upset you. I-I’ll just go and let you be.” Emily stood up and wiped her own tears she didn’t realised had fallen. She smoothed her hair and her jeans and walked towards the door.

“No.” Mulder ran towards her and hugged her. Emily hugged him back. “I’m glad you’re telling us this. I’m happy you’re here.” Mulder informed her into her hair.

“Okay. I’ll stay.”

They sat back down and she took in a deep breath. “Sveta would come and go, but when I turned 20 they came in my chamber and said that they didn’t need me anymore. That I was no use to them and that I was free to go. But that they had to do one last thing first: erase any memory of what had happened to me there.”

“I fought them. I struggled. I heard one of the people there say that I was just like my Mum.” Emily looked at Scully and they both smiled softly. “They took me to this place, this white, cold room where the only thing there was a grey table and a machine that looked like a drill. Yet, no matter how hard they tried, no matter how hard that thing drilled my brain, they couldn’t erase squat. Some things are hard to erase. I will never forget the cries of all of the babies that were taken from me; Sveta’s cries in the middle of the night while I hugged her, or my own cries; my screaming while tests were performed on me or Mulder’s screams. My pleading for them to stop… raping me, to stop them from implanting other people’s babies in me.”

“I woke up in this meadow. I was disorientated, I was dizzy, but I managed to find an abandoned cabin, and I laid low there for a while, terrified that they’d find me.” Emily turned her attention to Lily whose eyes were slowly closing and she was starting to fall forward from her sitting position.

“I decided to change everything about me. The way I dress – I hate wearing black -, my hair; I grew it out, dyed it brown.”

“Well, I like the way you look. Although you were always beautiful.” Scully said to her daughter. She smiled at her and sat closer.

They stayed in silence for a few minutes before Emily broke the silence. “Bet you want to add some whiskey to that coffee and turn it into an Irish one, huh?” Mulder chuckled as Scully stood up and grabbed Lily who was now sleeping.

“Emily, I hope you don’t mind me asking – and I completely understand if you don’t answer – but how did they punish you? Cause maybe I can piece back together some of the fade memories I have of my abduction.” Mulder asked her with shades of hope in his voice. He knew he was being insensitive because of Emily’s reaction. Here she was, basically pouring herself out to them and he was asking something from her because of his own selfish interests.

She sat back, completely taken aback. She sighed and started to play with her hands. “I’m sorry, Mulder. But I-I don’t want to talk about that. I’m just not ready to say it out loud cause it would make it seem all too real for me. Sometimes I just wish that it was all a horrible, horrible nightmare and that all of it never happened.”

Mulder smiled sadly and nodded. He wasn’t going to pressure her. He understood completely, as he had had a hard time when he got back from his abduction. Only Emily spent practically her whole life as an abductee, and based on what she told them, she’s been through far more worse things that he did. He knew that she would talk when she was ready.

“Of course. I'm so sorry I asked. So when did you decide that you wanted to find us?” Mulder asked.

“You and Scully were always on my mind. I’ll never forget Scully’s wish to adopt me or your Mr. Potato Head face. You were both so nice to me. The thought of you two was what made me get through it all. But it wasn’t until two years ago that I finally made up my mind. I’ll tell ya, you’re not easy to find.” Emily chuckled.

“We’re so happy you’re here.” Scully said as she rocked the little nugget back and forth. Emily smiled and Scully walked towards her. Emily stood up and Scully pulled her in for a hug, and then Mulder joined them.

“Where are you staying now?” Mulder asked her.

“Oh, just here and there. I’m crashing at a friend’s house right now.” Emily said nonchalantly and waved her hand.

“Well, you should stay here. We’d love to have you and by the looks of it, Lily likes you.”

“Really? I don’t want to be an imposition.” Emily confessed with a smile so wide that her face hurt.

“Of course you can. The spare room is William’s, but I’m sure he won’t mind if you stay there.” Scully affirmed without hesitating.

“Scully…” Mulder grabbed her elbow softly and pulled her towards the kitchen.

“Mulder, he’s alive. I know he is.” Scully whispered as she glared at him.

“Excuse me, but… who’s William?” Emily asked, not meaning to interrupt.

“Uh, he’s your brother.” Mulder replied this time, scratching the back of his head with one hand, putting his other in his pocket, and looking down at his feet. She could tell he was being weird about this whole William situation, so she didn’t push any further as to what might have happened with him.

“I have a brother, too? Is this him?” Emily pointed at the picture in the golden frame and glanced at them. Scully nodded and smiled. Mulder walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge, taking a bottle of beer out of it.

“It’s getting late. I should probably get going.” Emily announced, sensing the uncomfortableness in the air.

“Are you sure? Do you want me to take you anywhere? It’s getting dark outside and I think it might rain.” Mulder rushed to her and grabbed the car keys.

Although she was tempted to be riding in a Mustang, she declined the offer. “Thanks, but I like walking. It’s not that far, anyway.”

“Well, come back soon.” Scully hugged her shoulders tightly, and Emily kissed her cheek. She bent down and kissed Lily’s head.

“Bye, little nugget. I’ll be seeing you very soon.”

XXXXXXX

As she walked down the road, Emily saw a black car parked on the side, almost on the grass. Her blood froze, but she just kept walking. It had started to rain, so she pulled her hoodie up and stuck her hands in its pockets as deep as she could. Her heart was beating as fast as a Formula 1 car.  
  
She was now close enough to figure out who was sitting in the car. Stop. Sigh. Grunt. The person in the car started to turn its lights on and off, signalling her to walk towards it. And that she did.   
  
"Get in." The person behind the wheel said when she was close enough to hear. Emily didn't know if it was her imagination, if she was panicking or if the rain was actually falling down as furiously as it felt. The expression 'it’s raining cats and dogs' wasn't making it justice.  
  
When she reached the door, her hand went to the door handle, but she hesitated. The person turned its head and glared at her.   
  
"Get. In."  
  
"I honestly thought I wasn't going to hear from you again." Emily said when she got in, looking straight ahead to the road.  
  
"Was my lead useful?" The person asked. She could tell that there was an amused tone to its voice, yet it was never malicious; but it made her more anxious than anything.   
  
"You know it did. So wipe that smile off your face." Emily replied. She realised she was copying the taking-no-bullshit tone that Mulder had earlier that day. The thought made her smile internally, but in reality, she was pissed off.  
  
"Good. So, how are they?"  
  
Emily sighed and turned on her side, facing this person - facing him. "Amazing, of course. You know that. You could check up on them too, you know?"   
  
"I do know. I just can't." He said softly and turned his face to the window and sighed. Even though he wasn't facing her, she could tell that his expression was one of regret; she could tell he was sorry for everything that had happened to everyone because of him. Especially everything that had happened to Mulder and Scully because of him.   
  
After a few minutes of silence, Emily spat at him, "it's not as if they forgot about you." She was pushing his limits and she was being cocky. She wished she hadn't said anything when he turned to her with dark eyes.  
  
"I know that, Emily," he snapped. Emily gasped at his outburst and stared at him. "I'm sorry. Really, I am. But there's nothing I can do for them right now."   
  
Emily glared at him, her lips pursed and her brows furrowed. "Whatever." She turned on her seat once again, looking at nothing on the road through the angry wiper-blades. She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.  
  
"Look, you asked me for a favour. Now you have to give it back. We agreed on this, remember?"  
  
"Fine." She answered with frustration. She looked out the window and closed her eyes, trying to swallow the huge lump in her throat, trying to keep the tears forming in her eyes that were threatening to fall as forcefully as the rain outside.   
  
Finally, she took a deep breath and said, "Just take me home, William." William nodded and started the car.  
  
As the car drove away, the rain stopped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise William's not an asshole.
> 
> Enjoy!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emily returns to the Mulder and Scully household.

The car ride back to the warehouse was silent. Painfully silent. Emily didn’t bother talking to William, as she never really enjoyed it, let alone after what he had made her do and what he had said. Besides, he looked as if he didn’t feel like talking either: his hands were gripped around the steering wheel, his knuckles white.

Having nothing to do, Emily just stared out the window at the passing fields; staring at nothing.

Xxxx

After Emily left, Lily was fed, bathed, and it wasn’t long until she fell asleep.

The day’s events had left both of them exhausted; a ton of bricks thrown onto them and knocking them to the ground. Yet, Scully felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders; she felt lighter than air.   
  
After years of believing that Emily was dead, she showed up at her home out of the blue. It still shocked her that Mulder had been the sceptical one in this situation and she was the believer; she was the one who wanted to believe in this scenario - funny how things change.   
  
Right now they laid in bed wrapped around each other’s arms, Scully with her head resting on Mulder’s chest, finding comfort in the steady beat of his heart. They didn’t exchange much words ever since Emily left, except for “This is unbelievable”, “What do you want for dinner”, “Lily has to be fed,” “Scully, this chicken tastes amazing” and “Scully, Lily just soaked my grey t-shirt.”

But right now they were silently enjoying each other’s embrace. Scully looked up at Mulder and smiled contently. He did the same and before they knew it, they had fallen asleep and dreaming about the next time they’d see Emily.  
  
Xxxx  
  
The warehouse was big, old and cold. It was mostly empty except for a mattress with pillows and sheets on the floor, a lamp next to it, a table, and two chairs.   
  
When they reached their destination, William went straight to bed and propped up on his elbow; Emily remained standing with her hands in her pockets and she moved side to side.   
  
“So, what information did you gather?” William inquired and motioned Emily to sit. She grunted and took her hands out of her hoodie.  
  
As she sat down on the wooden chair, she spoke, “Not much. I just told them about what had happened to me.” Emily shrugged and leaned back.   
  
William’s eyes darkened and he got up from the bed, so quickly and aggressively that it startled Emily. “Emily! I thought I told you to gather information for me. Why haven’t you?” He was standing so close to her right now that she felt as if she were an ant.  
  
“If I may, what do you need that information for?” Emily asked as she stood up and lightly pushed him back; she wanted him to feel like the ant for once. This only made William’s anger intensify.   
  
“ _If I may_ ,” he mocked, “it’s none of your business.” Emily rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.   
  
“The only thing that I noticed was a picture of you wearing baseball attire and Dana said something about knowing that you were still alive and that they had a room set up for you and that I could sleep there if I ever chose to crash with them.” She blurted out. William straightened up and sat down on the table. His elbows were on his knees and his hands in his mouth.   
  
“Th-they have a room set up for me? But why? I mean, it’s not as if I’m going to go there anytime soon.” His anger had clearly disappeared and Emily just shrugged. Clearly, she didn’t think that that wasn’t such a big deal. “Okay. Okay, this is what you’re going to do. I need you to back and gather more information. I need you to find out whatever they know about me.”  
  
Emily sighed and scanned the warehouse. She laughed in exasperation and said, “Why? Why should I help you? Why are you so desperate?”  
  
William stood up and walked towards her, making her feel like an ant again about to be squashed by a giant foot. It was times like these when she wished she’d just kept her mouth shut.   
  
“Because if you don’t do this for me, I’ll tell them your secret.” He threatened her. The giant squashed the ant. Her secret could never be revealed, especially to Mulder and Scully. It would destroy them and the relationship they were starting to develop which she loved.   
  
William smiled deviously at her and tears filled her eyes. When she spoke again, her voice was thick. “Please, don’t. I’ll do whatever you say.” Her voice turned to barely a whisper. “I’ll go back in a few days and get more information.” She started for the mattress and William grabbed her arm.  
  
“No. You’re going tonight.”  
  
Xxxx

A few hours later, Emily packed her belongings – which were basically just one backpack – and left. William agreed to drive there as close as possible, given that it was the middle of the night.

She walked, and walked, and walked. She didn’t want to disturb them, especially since they had a baby and knew that she’d wake up, so she took her time. Yet, she was eager to get there only because she was tired and cold.

There weren’t enough lights on the road, so there were moments of complete darkness in which she could barely see. She walked down the long and winding road once again, only this time she didn’t hum the tune. Sir Paul didn’t deserve such misery.

Finally she saw the road to her left and braced herself for what was to come. William told her to collect more information, but this time she wasn’t coming back to the warehouse; she had to stay there until William said so. Emily knew that deep, deep down, he wasn’t a bad person. He was just a scared boy trapped in a 17 year-old. She’d just have to tolerate his shit for the time being.

The Mustang and the SUV were resting in the garage entrance and the porch light was on. There on the left she could make out a hammock; the perfect bed for the night.

Emily climbed the steps on her tiptoes and took out a blanket from her backpack. Quietly, she sat down on the hammock and opened the piece of fluffy cloth, wrapping it around her and setting the backpack as a pillow. As she started to lie down, the hammock let out a loud squeak that startled her. Her foot came into contact with the floor: extremely loud.

Voices came from the inside and the living room was no longer dark. “Who’s there?” Mulder asked. Emily could here his footsteps coming closer and closer, while Scully followed him, whispering to be careful.

The door opened slowly and the screen door hit the house in a rush, revealing Mulder with his gun up and looking around. Emily covered herself with her blanket and Mulder spoke again, “Who are you?” Slowly, she removed the blanket away from her face and let out a small yelp when she saw Mulder pointing a gun at her. “Jesus, Emily! You scared the living shit out of me, what are you doing here?” He put his gun down and his hand now clutched his chest.

“Emily?” Scully ran out of the house and then to Emily when she saw her lying on the hammock, shaking.

“I’m so sorry. I just needed a place to stay and I didn’t want to wake you up in the middle of the night.” Her voice was shaky, she was shivering, and it was a miracle that they could understand what she was saying. Emily sat up and Scully knelt down to her level. Mulder closed his eyes – partly in relief because there was no danger, and partly in sorrow.

“What happened to your friend? Why aren’t you there?” Mulder asked softly.

Surprisingly, she hadn’t thought about what to say to them if they asked what had happened to her temporary home. So she decided to improvise, “her mother kicked me out because she said that I came and went as I pleased and that I was a burden.” She avoided eye contact and focused on an ant walking next to the window. However, from the corner of her eye she saw that Mulder and Scully were eyeing each other.

“Come on in, Emily. You’re staying with us.” Scully helped her up and took her in.

“Thank you, Dana. I hope I didn’t wake up Lily.”

“Don’t worry. The world could be ending and that baby could sleep through it.” Mulder smiled and Emily chuckled.

As he held the screen door and waiting for Emily and Scully to get in, Mulder couldn’t help but feel that they were being watched. He took a quick look around the property and, when he didn’t see anyone, he shook his head in absurdity. They were in the middle of nowhere and the darkness that followed them all those years was long gone. He went back inside, yet the feeling of being watched was still there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tumblr: blossom-ofsnow


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No Beta, so sorry for spelling/grammar mistakes!

She walked desperately in the woods, zigzagging around the big, tall, green trees. She suddenly ran into a small cabin and slowly walked towards it. 

As she got closer, she realised that the cabin was abandoned, her suspicions confirmed when she opened the door. Turns out that the cabin seemed like one from the outside: the walls were made out of concrete and the light came in through a small window. Dead leaves and the recent autumn leaves had flown in the empty room and covered the concrete floor. It was macabre and intimidating, the wooden exterior definitely fooling her expectations of a cosy place to lay low. 

She sat on the cold floor with her back against the wall and nodded off, waking up with a startle in the middle of the night. Quickly, she got up and put her bag safely on her back and started running, convinced that someone was following her. She tripped on the root of a tree and fell hard on the floor. As she started to get up, something grabbed her foot and she screamed. 

Emily woke up from her nightmare with a jolt and sweat running down her face.

Scully had told her to sleep in William’s room until they could make arrangements and she went along with it, deciding not to press on the William thing so late at night. Her backpack had very few things, and none of them worked as pyjamas, so Scully lent her one of hers. Emily thanked her and hugged both Scully and Mulder goodnight, thanking them again for letting her stay. 

She hadn’t bothered scan her brother’s room; she was too tired. Besides, if things were going to be as he told her, she would be staying here for a while. She’d have plenty of time to investigate. What she couldn’t help but notice was how comfortable the bed looked: it had been so long since she had slept in a bed. Maybe since she lived with her adoptive parents. Where she slept in in the chambers weren’t beds; they were more like uncomfortable hard, yet soft tables – if there was such thing. When she returned, she slept on the floor; and the mattress at the warehouse was lumpy and uncomfortable. But this bed looked so comfortable and she felt as if she were floating on a cloud when she laid in it. 

She fell asleep before she could change into Scully’s flannel pyjamas. 

The morning sun was shining and coming through the window. An alarm clock sat on the night stand on her right and it read 10:30am. For so long, the latest Emily had woken up was 5am. She had to be constantly on the move and she had to be sneaky. She had to be careful and make sure that no one was following her, which is why she couldn’t afford sleeping past that time; although, if that Cigarette Smoking son of a bitch was still looking for her he surely had someone keeping an eye on her. 

She stretched and noticed that a piece of paper that had been placed on the foot of the bed had fallen on the floor. 

She picked it up and read:

  
_Emily, I came to see if you were up, but I couldn’t bring myself to wake you. I left a change of clothes on the chair by the door that I think will fit. You can shower if you’d like to and come downstairs whenever you want._

__  
Love,

_Dana._

_  
Ps. You snore really loudly._  

Emily chuckled and headed towards the bathroom. Turns out that Scully had also left some soft and fluffy apple green towels on the toilet with shampoo, conditioner and soap on top. She was getting the whole hotel treatment and she thoroughly enjoyed it.

It had been so long since she last had a nice, hot shower. The hot water felt sensational against her tense muscles, but she decided it was time to end the morning spa session when the water started to come out cold. After stepping out of the shower, she felt as if her body had melted like butter.

She returned to the bedroom wrapped around the soft towels and examined Scully’s clothes. A pair of dark blue skinny jeans, a white long sleeved shirt and a burgundy sweater were waiting to be worn and she was going to do so gladly. Clearly, Scully remembered that she hated wearing black and Emily smiled at her thoughtfulness.

After getting dressed and drying her hair with a towel, she took a look around the room: a telescope was standing next to the window and a Malcom X poster hung on the wall. There was a desk against the wall in front of the bed where a shelf was placed above it that displayed some snow globes and books. Emily walked with purpose and browsed through the books until she found the one that William would rant about for hours and hours that made her ears bleed: “The Pick Up Artist”.

As much as she disliked her brother most of the time, sometimes she felt bad for him. He did help her find Mulder and Scully – even though it was as a favour to him as well -, but he did help her out. So, without giving it a second thought, she grabbed the book and put it in her backpack.

Xxxx

At about 12pm, Emily decided to go downstairs. She walked past the nursery hearing Lily babbling to herself, and she couldn’t help but go in.

The nursery was beautifully decorated: the walls were painted a very light yellow and there were animals drawn here and there. A rocking chair was placed on a corner and a dresser and a changing table had been set up against opposite walls. Other baby stuff that Emily didn’t understand had been set up in the room, but in the middle of the nursery was the crib were Lily was kicking her legs and waving her arms.

Emily got closer and started cooing at her and Lily smiled and laughed. Emily’s heart warmed and she made funny faces and tickled her neck. Lily waved her arms up at her and she took it as a sign that she wanted to be held.

As Emily walked out of the nursery with her little sister, she noticed that something was framed on the wall opposite the door. A drawing that just by looking at it, it brought her a memory that she thought she had forgotten:

_Emily? I'd like you to meet a friend of mine. His name is Mulder. Remember I told you about him?_

_Hi._

_She's a little shy._

_What are you colouring?_

_A potato._

_Have you ever seen Mr. Potato head? He looks like this._  


Emily’s drawing was framed in a red frame and it hung above the changing table. She smiled and left the room with an excited Lily jumping in her arms.

Xxxx

“Well, good morning, sunshine! I trust you had a good night’s sleep.” Mulder greeted Emily as she entered the kitchen. He was washing a mug and dried it immediately with a dishcloth so that Emily could have a cup of coffee.

Emily sat down and Lily started to bang her hands on the table. “Yes, thank you. It’s been so long since I’ve slept on a bed, it felt as if I was sleeping on a cloud.” Mulder handed her the cup of coffee and she took a sip, letting out a “hmmm” after.

“Yeah, well you snore like a hammered truck driver.” Mulder took Lily from her and set her on the playpen.

“Oh, God. I’m so sorry, Dana left me a note and said the same thing. You’d think that after all the tests they’d do something about my sinuses, huh?” Emily joked and saw that Mulder’s back muscles clenched and he turned and gave her a forced smile. “Ha, ha.” Emily tried to lighten the mood, but clearly failed.

“So, where’s Dana?” She asked, trying to change the subject.

Mulder relaxed and the air felt as if Emily’s comment had never been said. Water under the bridge. “She had a doctor’s appointment, she should be back shortly.”

Emily nodded and took another sip of her coffee. Mulder had handed her a plate with a waffle and she took a big bite of it. “So, you guys were FBI agents. Tell me something about the X-Files.” She lay back on the chair and she turned sideways so that she could face him properly. Mulder’s eyes brightened and he straightened up.

“Oh, we’ve got some good stories. There’s this one about Flukeman…”

“Please, not Flukeman, Mulder.” Scully complained as she entered the house. They both laughed, but Emily could see the hurt and disappointment in his eyes.

“Emily, did you sleep alright?” Lily squealed when she heard her Mom and started to demand her attention and to be held. Scully took her out of the playpen and kissed her, blowing raspberries on her neck.

“Yes, I did. Thank you, Dana, for the clothes. And I’m sorry for all the snoring.” She sunk in her seat and pouted playfully. Scully walked over to them and greeted Mulder with a peck on the lips – Lily smacked him on the cheek – and kissed Emily on the head.

“No problem at all.” Scully smiled. “Mulder, did you change Lily? How long did she sleep this time?” She asked as she opened the fridge.

Emily kicked herself for getting in the way of their routine. If she was going to be staying here and helping them, she’d have to adjust to their daily life. “Actually, Dana, I brought Lily here. I was coming down here and heard her. I’m sorry I didn’t change her or checked if she needed anything.”

Scully looked at Emily with complete surprise. Sure, she wanted to kill Mulder for not checking on Lily as soon as Emily brought her down, but she couldn’t believe that her daughter was already bonding with her sister. It made her want to cry, but she forced the tears away.

“It’s okay, Emily. I blame Mulder for poor parenting on this one.” Scully shot daggers at him.

“Hey! I was tricked into talking about an X-File, I blame her.” He said as he turned to Emily.

The three of them laughed and Scully interjected, “Emily, I was thinking that maybe today we could go downtown and do some shopping. You can’t wear those black jeans and hoodie forever.”

Emily smiled. “I’d love to.” Mulder got up and started for the kitchen when she leaned in and whispered, “we’ll talk about Flukeman later.”

Xxxx

After lunch and putting Lily to sleep, Emily and Scully left. Scully thought of this afternoon as mother-daughter bonding, but wouldn’t dare say it out loud to Emily. After all, she didn’t want to scare her.

Black was a colour that Emily definitely didn’t like. She would only choose it for jeans and maybe a hoodie – and to Scully’s disturbance, lacy underwear -, but aside from that, she picked out mostly reds, greens, blues, purples and sometimes pinks.

Scully noticed that Emily’s phone was very, very old and its screen was shattered, so she offered to buy her a new one. She had declined, saying that she had already bought the clothes and that a cell phone was very expensive. Scully wasn’t having any of it and bought her one anyway.

While driving to the mall, Scully had asked Emily if she had any hobbies and she said that one of her favourite things was reading, but she had no books, so she settled to short stories on her phone. Before she knew it, Scully had taken her to a little bookshop and bought her copies of “Pride and Prejudice”, “The Kite Runner”, “Little Women” and “Fahrenheit 451.”

They were sitting at a Café when things started to get uncomfortable.

“Dana, thank you so much for all of this. Really, half of it wasn’t necessary.” Emily said as she took a bite of a scone.

“We can return some stuff if you like to.” Scully smiled and took a sip of her tea. She looked at Emily from under her eyelashes and saw her tense.

“We already left the mall, why bother go back?” Emily dismissed and rolled her eyes.

Scully laughed. “I thought so.” Emily started to spread butter on her scone when Scully spoke again. “Listen, Emily. I was thinking that maybe next week we can go to the hairdresser’s. Maybe get your hair back to that beautiful blonde.”

Emily’s knife hit the plate with a loud clang and Scully looked up. “Um… why’d you want to do that?” She asked in a small voice, her eyes never leaving the butter stained tablecloth.

“Well, you said that you had to grow it out and dye it. I thought you’d want it to dye it back to your natural colour.”

“N-no. I-I grew accustomed to it,” she said as she touched a strand of her hair. “But, thank you anyways, Dana.” Emily smiled sadly, but kept looking at the pastry in her hand.

Scully’s brows furrowed and she took another sip of her tea. “You’re welcome, sweetie.” Emily’s eyes scanned the room, but they never landed on Scully, so she decided to speak again. “I was also thinking that one of these days we can go furniture shopping. You are more than welcome to sleep in William’s room, but you’re going to need one of your own for when he comes by.”

Emily almost choked on her scone. How the hell did she know that he was still alive? And why was she so certain that he was? Mulder sure as hell was sure that he wasn’t.

“I thought there were no more rooms left.” Emily replied dryly.

“We’ll think of something.” Scully winked.

It had suddenly dawned on Emily that everything was changing; and fast. She wanted to live with Mulder and Scully, but on her own terms, not on William’s. She couldn’t dye her hair back to blonde, she couldn’t change anything about her. Well, maybe with the exception of her clothing.

She didn’t want them spending money on furniture that might gather dust because she might leave and not come back. Maybe they’ll never have the same hope they have with William. So she felt that that was a huge waste of money.

Emily felt uncomfortable and she was starting to feel hot. She was pretty sure that she was moments away from hyperventilating. “Dana, can we go home, please? I’m tired.”

Scully set her cup of tea on the plate and waved for the waitress to come with the check. “Sure, honey. Whatever you want.”

The car ride back was silent and Scully could feel – no, she knew – that something was wrong with Emily. But she wasn’t going to pry and ask her. If she wanted to talk about it, she would when she was ready to. Instead, they rode in silence until they arrived back at the Unremarkable House.

When they got in, Mulder was feeding Lily and he greeted them. “Hey, ladies. How was shopping?” None of them answered back so he turned around and looked at Scully who gave him a worried look. Emily was standing next to the door, frozen in place, and Mulder mouthed to Scully what happened to her. She shrugged and Mulder continued speaking, “Emily, how about I tell you about the Fluke?”

Emily’s head snapped and she ran up the stairs. Mulder and Scully looked at each other and Scully started to go after her, leaving the shopping bags on the floor, but Mulder grabbed her arm gently. They heard a door close, so they sat down and Scully told him about the afternoon.

Emily ran to the bed and hugged a pillow close to her chest, holding on to it for dear life. Tears were running down her face furiously and she rocked back and forth, trying very hard to be quiet.

Everything was just too much: the bed, the flannel pyjamas that she didn’t wear, the fluffy towels and the citrus smelling hair products, the hotel treatment, the new clothes, the cell phone, the books, the freaking potato. It was too much – too real.

She laid face down and used a second pillow to muffle her sobs. She fell asleep in that position as the sun set and the moon came out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tumblr: blossom-ofsnow


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What's going on with Emily and William?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A liiiiiiiiitle bit longer. Insomnia inspiration, I guess?
> 
>  
> 
> No beta, sorry for spelling/grammar mistakes!

The phone buzzed two times before Emily was woken up by it. She groaned and opened one eye, still lying on her stomach. Her face was damp from the tears and her hair was stuck to her cheeks, eyes red and puffy. All in all, she felt as if a train had ran over her a thousand times.

She didn’t know a lot of people – the so called “friend” she mentioned to the people sleeping on the bedroom opposite hers was fake -, so the only ones disturbing her sleep at the moment could be either William or a Candy Crush notification. Yup, Candy Crush notification indeed. God, she felt like a pathetic loser.

No matter how many times she hated her brother, even feared him, she wanted nothing else but to talk to him right now. She wanted to feel his presence beside her. So she grabbed her phone and texted him. “Are you up? I need to talk to you.”

For as long as she’s known him, William was a light sleeper or he rarely slept. It was now 2am and there was a slight chance that he was sleeping, but the chances of him being awake were higher.

She was heading for the bathroom when her phone buzzed. “What’s up? Are you okay?” William replied back almost instantly. She smiled and her heart filled with warmth. William may have a hard exterior, but in the end, he worried about her. It made her want to cry, but she was all out of tears.

“I don’t know. I need you, please.”

Not ten seconds went by before William texted back, “I’ll pick you up at the usual location.”

Emily got up and put on a pair of boots that Scully had bought for her and very slowly opened the bedroom door. The house was a little old and she was sure that the doors would creak. She walked slowly towards the stairs, and that’s when she heard voices coming from Mulder and Scully’s room.

“What happened today, Scully, I have to admit I’m not surprised. It was bound to happen and I’m just grateful that it happened sooner rather than later.” Mulder confessed sadly. Emily didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but she found herself with the right side of her body stuck to the wall and her head almost through the door.

“I know. It’s just… It was all so sudden. I was so silly, Mulder. I basically told her that I wanted the old Emily back – the Emily that was taken from me when she was just three years-old with beautiful blonde hair – and I clearly offended her. And I honestly didn’t mean that. She just told us that she had to change everything about her, I supposed that since she was with us she wanted to go back to the way things were before.” Scully was clearly crying by now and Emily saw Mulder reach out to her and wrap her in his muscular arms.

“Maybe she doesn’t want to go back, Scully. Maybe going back to her old self triggers horrible memories, the trauma she went through, and now she just wants to start over. Why else would she have come here? Hm?” Mulder kissed Scully’s crown and Emily’s heart broke. She suddenly felt as if someone had punched her in the stomach and knocked the wind out of her.

Why else would she have come if it weren’t for a fresh start. Huh. Fascinating question, Fox Mulder. You’ll be entertained to know that the answer – although it was at first – isn’t because of a fresh start, but because of blackmail. Oh, how betrayed they’ll feel once they know the true reason why she’s here.

Scully sniffed and reached out for a tissue on the night stand. She blew her nose and crumpled the soft piece of paper in her hand. “I suppose you’re right. But I still feel terrible. I made it ten times worse when I suggested going furniture shopping so we could set up a room for her.”

“But she has a room.” Mulder said matter-of-factly.

Scully clicked her tongue and looked at Mulder as if he were talking nonsense. “For now. But where will she sleep when William’s here? She won’t sleep forever on the couch nor will William.”

Mulder sighed. He unwrapped Scully from his arms and got up from the bed. As he talked, Emily could hear a hint of annoyance and tiredness in his voice. “Scully, I saw the Cigarette Smoking Man shoot him. I’m sorry, but he’s gone.”

“The only body they found was the old man’s body. And thankfully, because I was starting to think that that man was freaking immortal. Why do you think they only found one body, Mulder? I know that he’s still alive.” Scully was now standing opposite Mulder on the other side of the bed with her hands on her hips, touching her heart when she mentioned William. Emily’s brows furrowed and she swallowed a huge lump that had formed in her throat a while ago. Oh, Scully. You’re so right. If only I could tell you where he is and save you the pain…

“We share visions. He lets me know that he’s okay through the visions. The images are blurry and fast, but I see him in a warehouse and sometimes there’s a girl with him, I can’t make out her form. I just know that it’s a girl. And I’m so glad that he’s not alone.” Emily’s eyes were as wide saucers and she gasped loudly. Her hand flew to her mouth, afraid that she had been loud enough for them to hear. Apparently it wasn’t because they continued with their discussion.

“I gave him up for adoption because I was alone and I couldn’t protect him. But now you’re here and we can protect him as well as Emily if they let us.”

Scully walked over to Mulder and placed her hands on his chest as he embraced her by her tiny waist, both of their eyes meeting in a way that Emily couldn’t describe. The only word that came to her mind at that image was one: love.

“Mulder, I know you think I’m crazy. You’ve believed crazier things in the past and I played along with them. I know that William’s out there and I know that he’ll come home when he’s ready to.” Scully said softly. Mulder smiled and kissed the top of her nose.

“Okay. I trust your gut. Ooh, that reminds me, I have to tell Emily about Flukeman.” As they made their way to bed, Emily quietly tiptoed her way out of the house.

Xxxxx

As promised, William waited for Emily in his car at about two miles from the Mulder residence. The road was lit enough for her to make out the car, but he still flashed the lights just in case.

Emily got in the car and turned to William. In response, he gave her a tiny smile and she broke down. William had seen Emily cry, but never like this. She was sobbing uncontrollably, her tears were hot and staining her jeans. At one point, her hands covered her face and William tugged at them, to which Emily refused to let him remove them. So, he did what any brother would do: he reached out and hugged her. But it wasn’t a ‘there, there, everything’s going to be okay’ kind of hug. It was a bear hug. A hug that yelled ‘it’s okay to cry and I’ll hold you until you’re out of tears.’

A few moments later, Emily slipped out of the embrace and wiped her eyes and nose with her sleeves. William opened the glove compartment and gave her some paper napkins.

“What happened?” William asked sympathetically. “Did you get hurt?” He actually sounded like a concerned brother and it made Emily emotional all over again, only she fought it.

“No, of course they didn’t. They’re great,” she sighed before she continued. “William, I honestly can’t do this to them anymore. I honestly can’t. They’re doing so much for me.” William groaned quietly, tired of her complaining, and looked out the window. His lips were pursed and she lived long enough with him to know that he was deep in thought or counting to ten so that nothing regrettable would come out of his mouth.

Emily blew her nose and sighed. When William didn’t talk back, she decided to change the subject. “I’ve got some information.” She said quietly, almost a whisper. William obviously caught this and his eyebrows shot so high up that they almost got tangled with his floppy hair.

“Shoot.” He said expectantly.

Emily sighed once again and closed her eyes. She took a deep breath and told him about the conversation that she overheard earlier that night – but left out what they said about her. She could see William’s jaw clench and unclench, the look of fright in his eyes when she mentioned that Scully saw her in the visions. His lips curled into a tiny smile when she recalled Scully saying that they would protect them if only they’d let them, but curled back down almost instantly.

“Okay. Good. But I doubt that’s the reason you were crying your pretty little heart out.” William smiled at her sadly and encouraged her to share. She was reluctant, but ultimately did.

“They’re being so nice to me and so fast that I’m afraid of what will happen if everything’s revealed. I don’t know if I could live with myself, if I could live knowing that I caused them unnecessary pain. They want to set up a room for me God knows where in that house; hell, I’m not surprised if Mulder builds a room for me. And Lily has already warmed up to me as I have warmed up to her.” William nodded sadly. “Dana wants me to dye my hair back.” Emily said quietly.

William looked at her and beamed. “That’s nice of her. Isn’t that what you’ve been wanting for a while? To get rid of your hair and go back to how it was before? I mean, you won’t shut up about it and basically whine whenever you watch those Pantene billboards.” He smooched his lips and made a gesture with his hand and head as if he were flipping his hair to the side. Emily laughed and he joined her.

“I’m sorry you feel this way.”

“I just don’t want to do this anymore.”

“I know. But I need you.” He pleaded with puppy eyes. Must take after Mulder, Emily thought.

“Don’t you always?” She smiled. “Oh, I stole ‘The Pick Up Artist’ for you. So now _you_ can shut up about something that no one cares.” She handed him the book as the first rays of light had started to make their appearance, and Emily took it as her cue to head back. She reached over the console for another hug and, as she got out of the car, William spoke.

“Thank you, Emily. For everything. But remember that I still know your secret.”

Xxxxx

When Emily returned, everyone was still sleeping. She still didn’t want to get too attached, so she went back to bed and made sure to stay there until past noon. She knew Dana had something somewhere and Mulder was taking Lily somewhere else.

It wasn’t hard to kill time though. She got home at about 5.30am, fell asleep at around 6am and woke up at 2pm. The house appeared to be quiet, so she made her way downstairs. She was reaching the last steps when she heard the squeals of a tiny human.

“Fuck.” She murmured.

“Oh, hi!” Scully said almost too cheerfully. “I was going to wake you up any minute now, I thought you were dead.” She walked towards Emily and hugged her, careful not to leave any stains of whatever she had in her hands on her new clothes.

“I thought you weren’t going to be here all afternoon.” Emily said dryly. She hadn’t moved from the last step.

Scully continued to knead something in a bowl with her back to her daughter. “I did, too. Turns out I got to do everything in the morning.”

“W-what about Lily?” The baby was looking at Emily and had started to whine, clearly wanting to be picked up by her big sister. Emily wanted more than anything to hold her close and smell that amazing baby smell, but she fought the urge with every cell in her body.

Scully cleaned her hands with a dishcloth and picked Lily up, bouncing her on her hip. “Mulder was going to take her with him to see her Uncle Skinner at the hospital, but I told him she should stay here because I think she might be getting a cold, or something.” She grabbed the baby’s chubby arm and started to waltz around the room. Lily laughed and positioned her head on the crook of her neck as Scully kissed her hand.

Emily marvelled at what she was witnessing. The love between mother and child was something that she would never understand. She knew her adoptive mother loved her so much when she was alive, but the memories faded over time. She forgot what it was like to spend time with a mother – as much time as a three year-old and a mother could have – and she envied the relationship Lily was starting to form with Scully. She knew that if she let herself, she would have the same relationship. Yet, she wouldn’t allow herself to.

“Are you going to sit down and eat something or are you going to stand there all day?” Scully startled her from her own thoughts as she continued to sway back and forth, now only in one place instead of moving around the room. As if on cue, her stomach began to grumble. The last time she ate was yesterday afternoon and that was a tiny scone and a cup of coffee. The size of that scone was ridiculous, I mean, honestly, who thought tiny scones were a good idea?

“S-sure.” Emily said reluctantly and sat down by the kitchen table. Scully put Lily on Emily’s lap and she tensed. It was as if it were the first time she was holding a baby and she was afraid she might break it. Lily started to bang her hands on the kitchen table as she babbled.

“Mulder made some Mac and Cheese because he basically eats trash. I hope that’s okay.” Scully said from the fridge. Emily smiled and nodded nervously as if someone were holding a gun to her head.

Once the food was placed in front of her, and Scully returned to the task of kneading bread as she had informed her, Scully dropped the questions. “Emily, I hope you don’t mind me asking, but… what happened yesterday? I mean, everything was fine and suddenly it wasn’t. If I said anything that upset you, I’m so sorry,” she held a hand to her chest. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable or to rush things. This is all very new for you – for us – and we’ll just take it day by day; baby steps.” Scully smiled and Emily had to look away not to smile back. She hated having to be this way: cold, bitchy and ungrateful.

More than anything, she wanted to stand up and hug her, tell her that she didn’t do anything wrong and that she was giving her everything that she’s ever wanted: a family. A life. But she made decisions in her past that were keeping her from enjoying that. That were keeping her from happiness.

Instead, she said, “thanks, Dana. Actually, I’m not that hungry. I’ll be in William’s room.” She stood up suddenly and handed Lily to her mother. Scully looked at her flabbergasted as Emily ran to the bedroom.

Xxxxx

Days passed and Emily rarely left the room. After rummaging, she found a great collection of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Elton John, Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra records. Some records had miscellaneous music in them and her day mainly consisted of listening to records – even though she wasn’t big on Sinatra – and reading the collection of books on the shelf, as well as the ones Scully bought for her.

Mulder and Scully knocked on her door occasionally, asking her if something was the matter (to which she would answer that she was fine and that she was tired), and sometimes she would go downstairs to have lunch or dinner with them, always in awkward silence.

If she wasn’t locked in the bedroom, she’d go out. Where? She didn’t know. She’d just walk and walk and walk. Sometimes she’d go to Norfolk. Sometimes she’d just go to the woods and stay there until sunset.

One day, she woke up with a note coming under the door.

_We’re going out for lunch today. I’m not taking no for an answer. Fresh air will do you good as well as company. You can’t stay locked in there forever, Emily. We leave at 12pm SHARP._

_Mulder_

Emily sighed and glanced at the clock. 8am. Three and a half hours more of sleep.

This should be interesting.

Xxxxx

They went to Norfolk for lunch. The ride there was quiet except for some small talk that Mulder and Scully would exchange, and Elvis on the radio.

Against Scully’s will, they lunched at ‘The Grilled Cheese Bistro’. Emily and Mulder ordered grilled cheeses that were worthy of their name – messy, delicious and cheesy -, while Scully had a healthy one. Emily and Mulder rolled their eyes at her order.

For the first time in a while, Emily let loose and actually allowed herself to have fun just a little. She and Mulder were debating dessert when she spotted William staring at her from across the street. She stood up so quickly that the chair almost fell to the ground.

“Emily, honey. What’s wrong?” Scully asked as she touched her arm. Emily’s eyes were fixed on William nervously. Why was he here? He was clearly in plain sight and they were most certainly going to see him.

“Emily? Are you okay?” Mulder asked this time.

Fearing that both of them might turn to try to find what she was looking for, she replied, “y-y-yes. I just think I spot a friend over there. Mind if I go say hi?” They didn’t even answer back before she was out of the restaurant.

Emily walked towards William angrily. If she were The Hulk or something the road would’ve split open by now, she thought. She was absolutely furious.

“What the fuck are you doing here?!” Emily inquired. William grabbed her arms and walked her to the back of another restaurant out of Mulder and Scully’s sight.

“You weren’t answering your phone.” William said, half as a concerned brother, half as an angry possessor.

“I’m having a good time with my parents, William, thank you very much. My phone’s in my coat.”

William tensed when Emily mentioned Mulder and Scully as her parents and he inhaled deeply. She could clearly see that he was slowly counting to ten. “They. Are. Not. Your. Parents.” William said between clenched teeth.

“Yes. They. Are.” Emily mocked. “I have proof, remember?” She smiled deviously at him and he loosened his grip. He straightened up and shook his head as if regaining his posture.

“I’ve been thinking… maybe I’ll give them some sign of life.” Emily was caught off guard and she was at a loss for words. “Cat bite your tongue, Em?” William taunted.

“What are you going to do?” She was suddenly scared.

“Relax, sis. Nothing that would get any of us into trouble. You’ll know it’s me.” He smiled and ruffled her hair.

Xxxxx

Back at the house, Emily didn’t run off to the bedroom, but instead she stayed in the living room and watched a movie with them. She played with Lily and even fed her and made her go to sleep. Mulder and Scully – her parents as she had called them earlier that day – had to leave for an afternoon the following week and she offered to babysit.

It was after dinner and Emily was showering when Mulder sat down next to Scully with a glass of wine.

“That was a nice day. I was so worried that this behaviour was going to be permanent.” Scully sniffed the wine and took a sip, letting out a “mmmm” before taking another sip.

“Take it from a psychologist, Scully. I think it’s just a phase. If there’s something that she’s not telling us, she will when she’s ready, trust me. I’ve told you this before. We just have to be patient. This is all very new to us.” He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and leaned in and gave her a peck on the lips.

Scully smiled and took another sip of her wine. Mulder copied. “I guess you’re right. Although, it was weird what happened today, don’t you think? She just stood up and took off. I mean, she did return after ten minutes, but the way she walked out of the restaurant was as if she had seen an alien or something.”

Mulder’s smile faded and he turned so that he was now face to face with Scully. “I saw her talking with someone. I don’t know who it was, though. I think it was a boy? Very tall. He was wearing grey skinny jeans and a black hoodie with the cap on. He took her to the back of another restaurant which alarmed me. What could’ve possibly happened?” Mulder was clearly concerned and he could see that that same concern was now mirrored on Scully’s face.

Scully was about to speak when Emily descended the stairs. “So, want to watch another movie? I hear ‘Mean Girls’ is great.” Mulder and Scully looked at her and she looked back in confusion. “What’s wrong?”

A knock on the door startled them. It was almost 9pm and very few people knew where they lived. Mulder and Scully looked at each other alarmingly as they motioned Emily to hide.

Carefully, they opened the door and found that no one was there. They went outside to see if anyone was walking around the premises, but found nothing. They were going back inside when they saw a small snow globe sitting on the floor.

Scully grabbed it and she gasped. “Oh, my God, Mulder.” They looked at each other and smiled.

Emily walked back up the stairs and smiled at the fact that her parents had solid evidence of the existence of their son.

She slept with the bedroom door unlocked and all was good at the Mulder residence tonight.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The secret is revealed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Violence and talks of rape.
> 
> There's a time jump cause I want to speed things up a little.
> 
> No beta, so sorry for spelling/grammar mistakes!

The nightmare from days before had returned, only that it picked off where it ended.   
  
She was being dragged around the woods, her screams filling them as loud music filled a small room. But no one was around to hear her, no matter how loud her screams were. She squirmed and wiggled and cried and finally managed to turn and see her captor.   
  
She recognised that man. She felt a slight feeling of surprise, as if they were childhood friends who hadn’t seen each other in so long. But that feeling went as soon as it came, because that man was anything but friendly. Tall with olive skin - almost dark -, hair as black as the night sky and black eyes that were up to no good: that man was one of the Cigarette Smoking Man’s lackey.

He was assigned to her chamber and made sure she behaved and stayed there. There were times when she felt as if he was on her side, like when he wasn’t there and Sveta would snuck in he; or the time when she saw Mulder. She liked to think that he left so that she could wonder around and be up to no good. But that was a ridiculous thought. No one there had a sliver of goodness in them. They were pure evil. They showed their evilness to her many, many times.

In her dream, she was pleading. She screamed for him to stop and let her go, or asked him where he was taking her. The old man was dead, so what did they want with her now?

They suddenly stopped and she stood up. Right in the middle of a meadow, there was the spaceship. Instantly, she felt her guts churn and she knew that she was being taken again. But why? She was told that they didn’t need her anymore. She thought that with the old man dead, alien experiments and tests and rapes and everything she had gone through and the torture that Mulder had gone through had stopped.

Emily looked at the man who dragged her through the woods – she remembered she had nicknamed him Oliver – with fear. He looked down at her and smiled deviously. This time, he grabbed her by her hair and started walking her towards her past. She could barely make out the scenery around her because of her tearful eyes, but what was clear to her – or at least as clear as a dream was – was the shape of someone standing in front of it, it’s back to her and looking up in amazement.

She was starting to scream Mulder’s name when everything went black.

It was 6:45am when Emily woke up startled, sweaty and scared. Her clothes were stuck to her body and she was panting at an alarming rate. A panic attack waiting to happen. 

She got up from the bed and paced the room. “It was a dream, it was a dream, it was a dream, it was a dream”, she kept repeating out loud like a chant. The house was quiet but the soft voice of Scully soothing Lily in the nursery.

Taking deep breaths, Emily went back to bed and prayed that that nightmare didn’t come back.

Xxxx

_One month later_

Emily’s nightmares didn’t go away. They kept coming with full force every night, but they always ended the same way: she’d scream Mulder’s name before waking up crying. She had hoped that it would be as the first time, that the dreams start where they had ended and finish the story. But they were always the same. And no matter how many times they came back, she never got used to it. It wasn’t like her hair that she had gotten used to it being brown as she told Scully. It was far from it.

In spite of this, she tried not to make it show. Mulder was an excellent profiler, it wouldn’t take him long to figure something was wrong. So she’d just smile, and nod, and laugh at what was funny or at what wasn’t funny to her, but she wanted to be polite.

Late night get togethers with William in the middle of the highway still happened. Since her break down, William had been the one to summon them in the middle of the night. Whenever she ignored him, he’d call non-stop. She’d groan, get dressed, made sure that everyone was sleeping and leave. One night she thought she saw Mulder walking back to bed from the bathroom, but she shook her head and insisted that she had imagined it. He’d mainly ask her if she had more information, to which she would answer that she didn’t. He’d lose his patience, say a word or two louder than usual and Emily would shrink. He’d apologise and she’d chastise back. It was something that she had started to do which was new to her and felt really good: standing up for herself.

William had sent more snow globes, and by now there was a shelf on the wall with five of them. Emily had felt relieved and happy at first, but she was getting annoyed. If he was starting to make his parents know – albeit slowly - that he was alive, then she shouldn’t have to feel guilty about being here for his personal interest. He might as well just grow some balls and show up at their front door, stop toying with their emotions.

One Saturday afternoon, Mulder and Scully announced that they were thinking about visiting Monica and Skinner. Monica had recovered from her wounds, but Skinner was still having trouble walking without getting tired after a few minutes, so physical therapy was as intense as ever. They wanted to spend some time with them, but grown-ups only, just like old times, as Mulder had stated. Emily instantly offered to babysit and shooed them out of the door.

She loved spending time with her baby sister: they played with blocks, she read to her a book about sea animals (‘Goodnight Moon’ didn’t seem appropriate for a 3 o’clock nap) and danced with her, just as Scully had a while back. Elvis’s ‘All Shook Up’ and ‘Burning Love’ seemed to be Lily’s favourites and Emily couldn’t for the life of her get her hooked on The Beatles. Mulder must’ve had sung Elvis to her when Scully was pregnant. She mentally swore to introduce her sister to music other than the King.

She was lying on the couch with Lily fast asleep on her chest when her phone buzzed and William’s name appeared on the screen. She thought about answering it, but in the end decided to ignored it. It buzzed again. She ignored it. William sent her a text message that read: “Where are you? We have to meet. Say in an hour at the usual place?”

Emily groaned, rolled her eyes in frustration, nostrils flared and replied with one hand while the other rubbed Lily’s back. “No.” She let the phone drop between her and the cushions and closed her eyes.

Xxxx

William was not happy about Emily’s change of character. Yet, he sort of saw it coming. He knew he had a mind of her own, and he knew that she was a smart girl. She wasn’t going to be his forever. Not that she was his possession, William corrected himself quickly. Despite of his actions, he loved Emily. He really did. She was his big sister, a sister he never knew he had longed for. And apparently now he had a baby sister. He knew that with time, he’ll love her too.

When Emily had started to defy him and yell back at him, sort of like a cat-mouse thing, he became angered and wanted to punch something so hard that his fist would never be able to go back to the way it was before. He would never, ever hurt Emily and she knew that. Maybe that was one of the reasons why she wasn’t afraid of him anymore. Not that he wanted her to be afraid of him to begin with, but he didn’t like the fact that she was.

He enjoyed sending the snow globes. Sometimes, he’d hide in the woods and then linger around the house and watch them have dinner. Cook together, laugh together. Mulder would share X-Files stories and Scully would roll her eyes and defy him, even though she worked with him and saw with her own eyes what he was saying. He envied Emily for experiencing that and he hated himself for making her go through all of this. But he was obsessed with knowing what was wrong with him, and who Mulder and Scully were and if either of them – including Emily – were in danger before he could reveal himself to his biological parents. He was just as obsessed as Mulder had been with finding out the truth once upon a time.

One night, when he sent a snow globe with a small alien and a spaceship, he almost stayed. He was going to stand there and be there when the door opened. Only when the door knob started to turn, he sprint and ran away.

Tit for tat. That was what they had agreed – or forced, as William quickly recalled -, and he had to go along with it. Although he wasn’t sure how much more he could take.

Xxxx

“I’m so happy that Emily’s bonding with Lily. They do seem to love each other very much.” Scully smiled as she watched her daughters play outside from the living room window, her hands wrapped around a hot cup of tea.

“Uh-huh.” Mulder stood next to her and hugged her by the shoulders.

“She seems happy, right? You were right after all, what was happening before it was just a phase.”

“Scully, I’m right all the time. When have you ever proved me wrong?” Mulder chuckled and Scully elbowed his ribs. He faked pain and ruffled her hair.

Scully moved towards the linen closet to grab a blanket before going outside and joining Emily and Lily when Mulder spoke. “I think Emily’s in trouble.”

She turned around and looked at him as if he were crazy. “What do you mean, Mulder?”

Mulder walked towards her with his hands in his pockets and sighed. He really didn’t want to tell her this, but she had the right to know. “She’s been leaving the house in the middle of the night, her phone rings like crazy. Not to mention that situation when we went for lunch in Norfolk.” Mulder was gazing at her with a worried expression on his face and removed his hands from his pockets to cup her face.

Scully scoffed and chuckled, shaking her head. “Mulder, she’s twenty-four. She’s at an age where she sneaks out of the house and meets with friends. It’s normal. I mean, I’m not a fan of her walking alone down the highway, but if she feels that it’s safe…”

Mulder grabbed her shoulders moved closer, lowering his eyes to hers. “Scully, I have this feeling. I’m telling you, she looked pretty scared that day. And the other day when we went grocery shopping, she hissed “stop calling me or I’ll kill you” when her phone buzzed. I asked her what was that about and she looked at me as if she had actually been caught killing someone.”

Scully swallowed and shook her head in disbelief. “Well, what did you say to her?”

“I asked her what was that about and she just waved her hand as if it was no big deal and said that it was a friend who she didn’t feel like talking to at the moment.” They both looked outside the window and saw Emily dancing while Lily sat on a blanket on the grass and roared with laughter.

“I’m not saying that she is up to no good. I just have this feeling, Scully, that she’s gotten herself into something that she can’t get out of. But, I might be wrong.” Mulder raised his hands and stepped back.

Scully blinked twice and spoke. “We shouldn’t invade her privacy, Mulder. If she’s in trouble, she’ll tell us.” She turned around, clutching the tribal blanket to her chest, and left to join her daughters.

 

Xxxx

Emily looked at herself in the floor length mirror and felt weird. Her hair was tied in a ponytail and she was wearing make-up. The black jeans were an everyday apparel for her – even though she was wearing high-waist jeans -, but the red sheer blouse and high heels weren’t. The blouse fit her slim body well, but she didn’t like how it looked over her jeans, so she tucked it in.  

Scully had suggested a girls night out (Lily had to rain check for when she turned twenty-one) and she lent her some clothes. They were going to a bar for dinner and drinks; T-shirts and Vans sneakers didn’t fit well with the ambient.

At the bar, they ordered a Mexican platter to share and started the evening off with Margaritas. Scully couldn’t help but replay the conversation she had had with Mulder a few days before where he expressed his concern for Emily. Even though she knew that Mulder was wrong, she couldn’t help but be alert for any slight change.

Emily was finishing her second Margarita when William texted. “Come out.” Her jaw clenched and she closed her eyes taking a deep breath.

“Emily? Sweetheart, what’s wrong?” Scully asked as she set her glass down.

“Nothing. I need some fresh air, I’m a little hot. Guess the alcohol’s doing its thing, huh? Getting a little buzz going on.” Emily laughed as she jokingly swayed in place while letting out a sing-song “ooh”. Scully simply smiled and nodded while cocking an eyebrow. As Emily left the bar, she could feel Scully’s eyes glued to her back.

William was standing a block away with his hands in his pockets, gazing at the floor and swinging a leg back and forth. She stormed towards him and pushed him lightly.

“One day. Can’t you go one day without pestering me?” Emily’s eyes were full of rage and William jumped back a little. “I’m enjoying a night out with Dana, the first one since I showed up. Can’t you let me enjoy my time with them while I can? Or is that too much to ask? Huh?”

William was taken aback. Emily would usually save her outbursts for when they were alone, but tonight they weren’t. He wanted to apologise over and over again and tell her that yes, she could go and have fun with her mother and not to worry and do whatever she wanted with her life. But instead he said, “finish your ‘girls night out’” he mocked “and come to the warehouse. Tell her you’re meeting with friends.” He finished with a small voice.

Emily looked deep into his eyes and he deliberately avoided eye-contact with her. It was clear to her that she was the one in control in this conversation instead of him, but she agreed to meet him anyway. Time to put a stop to this once and for all.

Xxxx

Emily tried to drag the night out as long as she could, but eventually Scully decided to turn in because she had a six month-old at home. Emily told her that she was staying behind with some friends and Scully simply nodded with pursed lips. She watched her walkaway as she got in the car and drove away.

The warehouse was a fifteen minute walk from the bar. William was standing outside waiting for her.

“Hey, sis. You look nice. Never would’ve imagined you in high heels, though.” He greeted and reached for a hug.

Emily passed by him with a hand up and went inside. “Cut the crap, William. What do you want?”

William rubbed his hands as if he was planning an evil plan. “Got any more info?”

Emily scoffed and looked at the battered roof. She put her hands on her hips and it was her turn to count to ten. “You called me in for that? You know you could’ve texted me.”

“You wouldn’t answer. And I wanted to see my sis.” He smiled.

“William, knock it off with the sweet talk. I’m sick and tired with your mind games and your snow globes and your bullshit. That’s it. I’m out. Enjoy your life, don’t bother me anymore unless it involves bathroom usage at Mulder and Scully’s place. Goodbye.” Emily started to walk out with her head straight, feeling triumphant, when William caught her by the wrist.

“Okay. You go enjoy your life. So that means that you don’t mind me telling them that you’re still working for the Cigarette Smoking Man?”

Emily’s eyes grew wide and were dark with fury. “I’m not working for him! He’s dead now, anyway.” She said between gritted teeth while trying to pull away from his grip, but he wouldn’t let go.

“No? So all the things you told me about how you had to make a deal with him to come back to this beautiful planet we call Earth was a lie? How the only way he let you return was if you worked as an informant?”

Hot, angry tears were threatening to fall. “But nothing happened.” She said in a small voice, almost child-like.

“Maybe nothing happened after you returned. But you did make a deal with him nonetheless. He who put your precious parents through hell. How do you think that would make them feel? How would Scully feel? To find out that her so-called daughter has been working with that bastard all along, even when she has been living under her roof. I think the word is betrayal. Don’t you?” William clicked his tongue and shrugged. “What a shame. Wouldn’t want to put your new ‘family’ through that kind of pain, huh?” He smiled deviously and what happened next was a surprise to both him and Emily.

As hard as she could, Emily slapped William. He brought a hand to his cheek to alleviate the sting. He loosened his grip on her wrist and she managed to pull away. She was expecting William to retaliate with some form of violence – a slap, a punch or maybe Ghouli -, but he stood there surprised. Slowly, he started walking towards her – not in anger, but with a sadden expression across his face - and she started throwing everything she could find: an old radio, pillows, ‘The Pick Up Artist’.

“Emily, stop…” William pleaded.

“No! Don’t come any closer, William. Leave me alone. Please, leave me alone!” She yelled.

William swallowed a lump in his throat and blinked a few tears. He nodded slowly and whispered, “okay. I’m sorry.”

Emily ran from the warehouse and made her way to the house.

Xxxx

Contrary to what she thought, she didn’t feel bad about what had happened back at the warehouse. She was absolutely against violence; she had gone through it enough to know that that was never the answer. But in a strange way, it felt nice to stand up for herself and even more nice to finally be away from William’s threats.

When she got home, the kitchen lights were on. She knew that Scully hadn’t been too keen on her staying behind, and she tried to believe Scully’s story that she had gone to the kitchen for some water and the sleepy face she was trying to pull off that didn’t fool anyone.

“Did you have a nice time with your friends?” Scully asked while faking a yawn with her back to Emily as she served her a glass of water. Obviously she had waited for her to return to carry out the interrogation.

“Yeah. It was… different.” She rubbed her eye with her index finger and took the glass from Scully’s hand. She drank the cold water in one gulp.

“Oh? How so?”

Emily let out a loud and satisfied “ah” as she set down the glass on the table. She looked at Scully and smiled. “I don’t know. It just did. It was something I had never done before and it felt nice to do something different for a change.” Emily saw Scully’s face go white as a sheet and she immediately corrected herself. “I didn’t have the sweet sex if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Scully tried to hide it, but she sighed in relief. “Oh, not at all. I think you’re old enough to make your own decisions.” The last words came out as murmurs as she grabbed Emily’s hand from across the table and looked down at the table.

She chuckled internally. “I’m pretty tired. Do you mind if I go to bed?” Emily asked as she stood up.

Scully straightened up and shook her head. “Oh, no, sweetie. Go, go. We’ll continue in the morning.”

Emily smiled. “To be continued.”

As she lay in bed, Emily couldn’t feel more relieved. She was finally going to be able to really enjoy her life and actually be able to live with Mulder and Scully. She would finally be able to go furniture shopping with Scully and set up her room.

And most importantly, she would finally be able to call them ‘Mom’ and ‘Dad’ as she had wanted to ever since she stepped foot in their house.

Change was coming and she could feel it in her bones.

Xxxx

Scully was making coffee when Mulder descended the stairs with a sleepy Lily in his arms.

“She woke up and I thought I might bring her here to watch her old parents slowly move around the kitchen preparing breakfast.” Mulder said as he walked towards Scully.

She met him halfway and kissed him on the lips. They smiled at each other and Lily interrupted their sweet moment with a squeal. They laughed and Scully caressed her head, giving her a kiss on her cheek.

When she got home from the bar, Mulder had asked Scully about Emily’s whereabouts and she told him she had stayed behind. This alarmed Mulder, to which Scully hated to admit that it alarmed her too. Ultimately, it was her choice to stay up until Emily got safely home and went to bed. She succeeded in her task, but failed miserably in her acting.

They were sitting at the kitchen table – Scully was feeding Lily her bottle – when they heard a knock on the door. Mulder got up and thought he had seen someone running towards the woods. Instead of going towards the door, he walked to the window, but saw nothing. He turned towards the door and opened it.

Under a flowerpot there was a white piece of paper that, if it weren’t for the heavy ceramic pot holding it down, would’ve been blown away. He picked it up and what he read made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up:

“She’s not who she says she is. She’s not who you think she is.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tumblr: blossom-ofsnow


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emily explains the letter Mulder and Scully received and has to live with the aftermath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit longer than the others.
> 
> I know it's supposed to be just 10 chapters, but I may add another or two. 
> 
> No beta, so sorry for spelling/grammar mistakes!

“Mulder? Are you okay? You’ve been standing there for a while.” Scully approached the door and Mulder spun quickly, almost falling. He crumpled the piece of paper slightly and kept it in his hand, not wanting Scully to see him drop it.

Scully was holding Lily on her hip and she was patting her cheeks, pulling a strand of hair or two in the process. Scully lightly grabbed the baby’s hand and put it down as she freed her hair.

Mulder smiled and nodded. Lily grinned at her father and placed her head on her mother’s shoulder shyly. “Look who’s shy all of a sudden! You weren’t so shy the other day when I took you to the farmer’s market and you wouldn’t stop screaming.” Lily laughed.

Scully clearly noticed that Mulder was avoiding her concern, but decided not to think too much of it. Instead, she narrowed her eyes and said, “okay. Well, I’m taking Lily to see Monica today. It’s been a while since she’s seen her and the other day she asked how she was doing and wished to see her. The last time she and Lily hang out together was when Lily was three months old.” Scully had started for the playpen as she spoke and sat Lily there. She handed her some blocks and a rattle, to which the baby shook with gusto.

“Yeah, yeah. Great, I think you should.” Desperate, Mulder looked around for a trash bin, but as Scully began to turn around, he placed the piece of paper on the table by the door.

A door opened upstairs and a loud yawn was heard. A loud thump followed by an ‘ow’ indicated that Emily had ran into the bathroom door – more often than not she would leave the bedroom squinting and looking down at the floor. Scully laughed and sat on the kitchen table, grabbing a cup of yogurt from the fridge on her way.

Mulder, on the other hand, swallowed nervously and felt the back of his neck hot with anger. From the moment Emily showed up at their doorstep, he knew that something was going on; it was just too good to be true. After hearing her story, he grew fond of her – even started to love her a little -, but then she started to act weird and jumped or got angry every time her phone buzzed, she’d sneak out in the middle of the night, the mystery man from Norfolk.

He sat down across Scully and started to drink his coffee in silence when Emily joined them. “Morning, everybody.” She had opted to stay in her pyjamas as opposed to changing clothes. She leaned down and hugged Scully, but greeted Mulder with a smile and a small wave when she saw his glare. “Good morning, Mulder.”

“You woke up early, honey. Did you sleep alright?” Scully stood up and reached for the Rice Krispies on top of the fridge.

“Yeah, the wind woke me up.” Emily informed. Even though he was furious, Mulder placed a cereal bowl and a spoon in front of her. Emily looked up and smiled. “Thank you.” She said in a small voice.

“Mm-hm.” Mulder avoided eye contact and looked out the window.

Scully was standing behind Emily and furrowed her brows. What was going on between them? She shook her head. If there was any beef, they had to squash it. She wasn’t going to meddle.

Scully put the cereal, milk and a cup of coffee in front of Emily and sat down. “So, what’s the plan for the day?” Emily asked, pouring the cereal on the bowl.

“Not much. I’m taking Lily to see Monica. Do you want to come?”

Emily put the milk back on the table and looked at Scully. She always considered that meeting these Monica and Skinner people was something that would happen when she had earned their trust, which she thought wasn’t going to happen in a long, long time. And Scully offering her to come along for the ride meant that she was trusted. “I’d love to.” Emily smiled.

Mulder stood up and sat on the couch, switching the TV on.

Xxxx

“What the hell is going on with you, Mulder?” Scully entered their room with her hands on her hips. Mulder was standing next to their bed putting a clean shirt on (Lily had thrown mashed sweet potatoes on the other one), and he grabbed the dirty one, made it into a ball and threw it in the hamper. When it went in, he celebrated with a little dance.

“Are you going to stay there dancing like an idiot, or are you going to answer me?” Scully demanded. She was now standing in front of Mulder who continued to dance in place.

“Whatever do you mean, Scully?” Mulder placed his hand on his chest as if he were offended. Scully swatted his hand away.

“You’ve been nothing but rude to Emily ever since she woke up. Either you glare at her or don’t even look at her; you picked Lily up from the playpen when she clearly was playing with her; she sat next to you on the couch and you got up. Is there something wrong, Mulder? Am I missing something?” Scully looked at Mulder with plea in her eyes and he so wanted to tell her the truth. He just couldn’t bring himself to. She suffered so much when they thought Emily had died that he didn’t want her taken away from her again.

Mulder began opening his mouth to speak, but couldn’t get his words out. He looked like one of his fish when they were eating food. It felt like forever when he finally responded with the lamest excuse he could think of. “She told me she thought Elvis wasn’t that good. Which I respect, you know. Not everyone likes the King. But when she said that the Knicks sucked… that was too far.” He grimaced and Scully eyed him in suspicion. God, that was so lame.

“Seriously? You’re giving her the silent treatment for that? You’re such a loser, Mulder. Go apologise. She’s probably crying her eyes out.” Scully pointed her index finger to the door. Mulder’s shoulders dropped and he nodded.

As he left the room, he heard Scully scoff. “Elvis and the Knicks. Just when you think he can’t get any more pathetic.” He could practically see her rolling her eyes.

He did as Scully told him. Well, part of it, actually. He did go downstairs; but he wasn’t going to apologise.

Xxxx

Right after lunch, Emily left for her room to get ready for their visit to Monica’s. It was weirdly warm for March, so she decided that a pair of jeans, a sweater and a light jacket would be enough.

She started for the stairs and heard Scully talking to Lily in the nursery.

“We’re going to see Aunt Monica today, aren’t we? She loves you so much. Oh, yes she does.” She cooed as she dressed her in a light blue onesie with tiny pink roses and a small pink bow on the collar.

Emily went in and sat on the rocking chair. “She’s so adorable, Dana. Really.” Scully smiled and turned to the dresser to grab a pair of white cotton pants.

“I know. Mulder says she looks like me, what with the freckles and the red hair, but I don’t know. There’s a lot of Mulder, too. Like the big appetite, for example.” They both laughed. “Lily, stop moving, I can’t put your pants on.” Scully ordered. Lily ignored her mother’s commands and continued to kick her legs – probably harder than before.

Emily got up and stood next to Lily, placing a hand on her tummy and caressing her head. “Now, now, Lily. If you’re not dressed we won’t get to go see your Aunt Monica. And if we don’t go see your Aunt Monica that means we won’t get five bucks like those Aunts in movies do.” Scully laughed. Lily listened to her sister and stopped moving long enough for Scully to finish dressing her. When Emily looked up, she saw the drawing of the potato hanging up on the wall.

“I remember drawing that. You kept that all these years? I can’t believe it.” Emily confessed. Scully turned to see what she was pointing at and blushed.

“Of course I did. It was the little piece of you I had. I wanted Lily to have a reminder of her siblings, even if it meant having a drawing hanging on her bedroom wall.” Scully lifted Lily off the changing table and bounced her lightly.

“A reminder of William and I?”

Scully smiled sadly. “Yeah.” She kissed Lily’s cheek and Emily saw a tear fall from hers. “So, are _you_ ready? We should probably get going. The wind’s gone and I want to take in as much of the warm day as possible.” She sniffled and wiped the tear off with her sleeve.

“Yup. Just have to put my jacket on, it’s downstairs by the door.” Emily turned and ran down the stairs. Mulder wasn’t there – must be in his room, Emily thought -, and grabbed the jacket from the coat hanger. As she was putting it on, she saw the crumpled piece of paper. It was odd for them to have litter around the house, so she walked to the table and grabbed it, intending to throw it in the bin under the kitchen sink.

Perfect handwriting in black ink stood out from the paper and her heart started beating faster. She didn’t have a good feeling about this.

With shaky hands – and taking a shaky breath – she uncrumpled the paper and gasped at what it was written in it.

“Shit.”

Xxxx

Mulder was shouting something about watching the greatest basketball game of all times while walking down the stairs. Emily paced back and forth and ignored Mulder’s startle.

Scully followed with Lily already strapped on her car seat, replying something she couldn’t make out. It was as if everything was distorted and all she could hear was mumbling.

She was brought back to reality when Scully stood in front of her. “Ready?” She said expectantly.

Okay. You have to do this, Emily thought. Explain this to them. Scully clearly hasn’t seen this, otherwise she would be treating you the same way Mulder’s been treating you. Shit fuck, Mulder read it. Mulder read it, Mulder read it, Mulder read it. He doubted you from day one and now everything’s gone to hell. Fuckity, fuck, fuck.

The only one who could’ve done this was William. But how could he? He just told you to have a good life. Was he _that_ much of an asshole?

Or it could be worse. It could be CSM’s lackeys. Someone’s been keeping tabs on her all these years and has chosen now to get her because she’s led them to Mulder and Scully.

Just… explain. Maybe they’ll understand.

“Emily? Shall we?” Scully repeated.

“Uh… no.” Emily answered. Mulder shook his head in confusion and placed his hand on his hip, leaning against the kitchen table.

“Do you need a minute? Get changed, go to the bathroom, something?”

Emily nervously looked at Mulder. He clearly realised that Emily had seen the piece of paper because he held eye contact before clearing his throat and glancing at the floor, crossing his arms.

Emily straightened up and took her jacket off. “I-I-I have to tell you something.” She sighed and sat on the couch, elbows on her knees, head on her hands.

“Okay.” Scully narrowed her eyes and glanced at Mulder. He walked her to the living room area with his hand on her back and sat down on the same chair he sat down in the day Emily told them her story. Just like that same day, Scully sat next to her.

Emily swallowed nervously and began to speak. “Before I start, I just want to say… thank you for everything. You were my family when I didn’t have one and you’ve given me so much more than I could hope for. No matter what happens, I’ll always be grateful and I will accept my fate, even if that means not seeing you again. And that I’m truly sorry.”

Scully looked at Emily and at Mulder. “Sweetie, you’re scaring me. What are you apologising for? And why won’t we see each other again?” She sat closer to Emily and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

“What I’m about to tell you, it’s because I’d rather you hear it from me than from somebody else who has it all wrong. What I did, I didn’t have a choice. I had to choose between life or death. I chose life.

“When I got back from where I ‘lived’ practically my whole life, I did lay low for a while. That _is_ true. Some memories from my past life were foggy, but they weren’t gone. They couldn’t take them away, as I told you before. I just had to try really hard to get them right.

“One night, I woke up and I remembered clear as day about that time when I was drawing the potato and you introduced me to Mulder,” she nodded towards Mulder who was listening intently with his elbows on his knees, “and how well you took care of me. I felt safe with you.” Scully smiled and grabbed Emily’s hand.

“I knew that moment that I had to find you. I wanted to feel that safety again, and I knew that if I lived with you I would be protected.” Emily stopped talking and fought the tears in her eyes. She looked at her fingers interlaced with Scully’s, then at Mulder.

After sensing that Emily was too afraid to continue speaking, Scully said, “Emily, you can tell us anything, you know that, right?” Yeah, not this, she thought. “You can continue whenever you can, we’re here to listen.” She encouraged.

Emily took a deep breath and continued her confession. “I did something I shouldn’t’ve done.” She said in a small voice.

Mulder decided to interject quickly. “What did you _do_ , Emily?” He sounded like a father chastising her daughter and, if it weren’t for what Emily was about to say, she would’ve smiled at the fatherly trade mark.

“I got into government property. I snooped around places I shouldn’t’ve snooped around looking for you. After a couple of illegal entries, I found Dana’s address, only when I got there an old lady answered the door and told me that she hadn’t lived there in a while. That the last thing she heard was that you had ran away with Mulder and you were fugitives or something. By the way, that last part is sort of cool, huh? Being fugitives and stuff?” Mulder and Scully snapped their heads in her direction, obviously not amused by her attempt to lighten the mood with humour.

Emily shook her head in embarrassment and continued. “Anyway, that’s when I hit a wall. That is until last year when I got a lead that you were living here in the middle of nowhere.”

“Emily, what you did is beyond wrong. You can’t go snooping around places you’re not supposed to.” Mulder chastised.

“Oh, you’re one to speak?” Emily sassed back.

Mulder was taken aback and sat back on the chair. He crossed his arms and said, “continue please.”

Scully shook her head in confusion. “Who told you where we lived? We have an unlisted address.”

Emily took a shaky breath. What she was about to say wasn’t going to be of their liking. “I got it from William.” She closed her eyes and heard them gasp in unison.

“What are you talking about?” Scully asked shockingly.

“The other thing I found in the government files was that I had a brother who was given up for adoption: William Scully, now called Jackson Van De Kamp. It turns out that he had done some snooping of his own and found out about me, only he thought I was dead, like you did.

“We eventually found each other around December. I told him my story; he told me his.” Emily looked back up and could see that Scully was crying and Mulder was cupping his mouth with his hands as if he were praying. “I wanted to find you so bad, and when he told me everything that had happened earlier that year and gave me your address, I was beyond happy—”

“You’ve known about William’s existence?” Mulder interrupted, clearly annoyed. He held a palm in front of him as if trying to make sense of the situation. She looked down, completely ashamed, and nodded.

“Well, where is he?” Scully asked, hopeful but hurt.

“I can’t tell you.” She whispered.

“You’ve known he was alive all this time? You heard us talking about William, concerned about his well-being; you hear Dana suffer, not knowing if her visions were messages from our son or just something she couldn’t make out. And you knew all along where he was. We gave you shelter, you could’ve had the decency of sharing, Emily. I think we deserve that.” Mulder stood up and his voice got louder and louder with each word. She didn’t blame him. He was accurate with everything he was saying. They gave her a roof, warmth, food, water, clothes; even love. And she’s been lying to them the whole time.

Scully straightened up and held her hand out, motioning Mulder to calm down. The look on her face was something that Emily couldn’t quite pinpoint. It was a mix of relief, hope, hurt, anger and, most of all, sadness. “Emily, I don’t understand. Why didn’t you tell us?” She sighed.

Emily wanted to answer that she didn’t say anything because she felt threatened, because their son – the one who they searched for since they gave him up for adoption -, was a total asshole. But she knew that if that was the answer she’d get, she would hurt her even more. And Emily hated seeing a hurt Scully.

“I couldn’t.” She simply said in a small voice, almost silent. She played with her fingers and her tears stained her hands.

“Why?” Scully sat closer to her and Emily wanted to get up and tell her that she was being too kind, that she had fucked up and she didn’t deserve to be treated like this; didn’t deserve to in the first place. She wanted to leave it at that and run away forever, but she couldn’t.

It was time to face the music. “Well, remember that I said that my being returned because they didn’t need me anymore was true?” They both nodded. “There actually was a condition first.” Mulder and Scully looked at each other frightened, as if they knew what was coming.

“I was sitting on my bed when he came in and sat down next to me. He said that all of the tests that had to be run on a body like mine were finished and that I could go. They joy that I felt at that moment is beyond describable. I mean, I almost hugged him. Hugged him!” She said in disgust, almost hoping that that would generate some sort of emotion from Mulder and Scully, but instead she was met with the same blank faces.

“He started laughing and told me that the only way I could go back was if I worked for him. If I kept tabs on stuff he had going on here with previous abductees. But he specifically mentioned you two.”

Mulder, who had been trying to place the pieces together, snapped his head at her, clearly realising who she was talking about. “Who’s ‘he’?”

Swallowing and gathering all the courage left in her body, Emily whispered, “the Cigarette Smoking Man.”

Mulder’s fingers curled, turning into fists and, if this were a cartoon, smoke would be coming out of his nostrils and ears. Scully, on the other hand, gasped and looked down at her feet as if in thought and trying to accept what she had just heard.

“H-he said that if I didn’t agree, I would stay there for a long, long time – maybe even for the rest of my life -, and I didn’t want to. I remembered what they did to you, Mulder. The poking, the prodding, the machines attached to your face and the brainwashing and the hitting. Everything they did to me: the raping, my babies. I just couldn’t take it anymore.

“I agreed to his offer and he told me I’d be returned in the morning. I spent that night planning how I would change, so that they couldn’t find me. I had that plan tattooed on my brain because I knew the last thing they were going to do was erase my memories.

“I haven’t heard from them yet, and I like to think that it is because I succeeded in my plan. And I knew that you would protect me, that’s why I’m here.” Emily’s explanation had turned into a plea by this point. She was sobbing and she turned her gaze from Mulder – whose face was practically red – to Scully – who was completely quiet.

At that moment, Emily felt a sort of déjà vu. The tension in the air was the same as the one of the day she explained what had happened to her. Only this time, nothing would be the same.

She was uncomfortable. She shifted in her seat and she racked through her brain to find something humorous, but nothing came to mind. She didn’t care if it sounded insensitive or not; she just wanted someone to speak.

It felt like hours had gone by before Mulder spoke. “Your hurt us, Emily. You disappointed us, but most of all, you’re putting us in danger. You’re putting Lily in danger. Get out.” He extended his left arm and pointed towards the door, his command leaving his lips between gritted teeth. Scully’s head snapped and she stood up.

“Mulder, wait—”

“Get your things. _Your_ things. I want you out of the house.” Tears were streaming down his face and Emily felt like someone had twisted a dagger in her heart. _Your_ things, Mulder clearly said. It was fair; she would’ve been surprised if they had just shook it off and said that everything was in the past, that it didn’t matter anymore.

No. CSM had seriously fucked them up. He was responsible for every obstacle they had had to face, every bad thing that had come in their way for the past 26 years.

Emily stood up and headed for the stairs. As she walked to her room – it’s no longer your room, silly, she thought -, she heard Scully’s pleas, “Mulder, please. Listen to yourself, she didn’t have a choice!”

“She’s working for him! She’s snooping and gathering information and giving it to that son of a bitch. I thought that when I shot him dead it all had ended. It had to end somewhere, Scully. But it never ends with him, does it?” Mulder yelled in frustration.

“Mulder, we don’t know if she’s been snitching with his people. She’s a scared girl who had no idea what to do and wants to feel safe for once in her life. We can protect her.” Scully said softly as she got closer to Mulder and placed her hands on his chest, trying to calm him down.

Mulder, however, was having none of it. He took a step back, freeing himself from Scully’s touch and pulled on his hair. “You said the same thing about William, Scully. And where is he now? We don’t know. Because we thought he was dead, and now we’re not allowed to know where the fuck he is.” He kicked the chair and it fell, hitting the floor loudly. Lily, who had fallen asleep, was startled and started to cry.

The crying and she shouting started to mix and Emily couldn’t take it anymore. She complied with her orders and changed into her jeans and black hoodie. She switched her new phone for her old one and quietly walked downstairs.

Mulder and Scully were still fighting when she got to the door and she was sure they hadn’t seen her leave.

Xxxxx

She decided to walk through the woods. William wasn’t going to be waiting for her on the road, and she wanted a change of setting. The road was cold and lonely; the woods were welcoming.

The sun started to set when she got her phone out and texted William:

“Thanks for stabbing me in the back, bro.” She put her phone back in her hoodie pocket and wiped the fresh tears from her face.

A couple of minutes later, her pocket buzzed. “What are you talking about?”

She huffed and replied, “I think you know what I’m talking about. That letter you left at the doorstep? Real nice move. I thought you were going to let me be, asshole. Mulder read it and I had to explain everything to them. You’ll be happy to know that I’m homeless once again.” She ended the text with a smiley face.

William replied instantly. “What letter? What do you mean you’re homeless? What’s going on, Emily? I honestly don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Save it, William. Stop your caring brotherly bullshit. Don’t expect me to come back to the warehouse, cause I won’t. I’d rather sleep in the concrete cabin.”

Just as Emily hit send, she felt someone standing behind her. She froze and she swallowed.

“Hello, Emily.” She could hear the smile in the person’s voice and she wanted to punch his face so bad.

Slowly, she turned and faced him, having to look up – to the point of the back of her neck hurting – so that she could look at his eyes. He obviously saw the scared look she had. He amused himself with these kind of things.

When he smirked, she replied. “Hello, Oliver.”

“You know my name’s not Oliver, right?”

“I know. I don’t care to know what it is, so I nicknamed you Oliver. Also, your skin’s like olives.” She felt as small as an ant, but she tried to sound as if she weren’t afraid. Obviously, she failed miserably when she could only speak in a small voice.

“Long time no see, huh?” He reminisced and Emily nodded. “What’s it been, like two years?”

Emily closed her eyes and hugged her chest. “Oliver, how did you find me? I’ve been good, what do you want from me?”

He smiled deviously and lowered himself to her level. He put his hands in his pockets, looked around and then held his gaze with hers. Then, he whispered, “So, did Mulder get my letter?”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tumblr: blossom-ofsnow


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emily's in trouble, William contacts Scully, and Mulder goes to find Emily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No beta, so sorry for spelling/grammar mistakes.
> 
> Also, the chapter was supposed to be longer, but I just wanted to publish something since it's been so long since I last updated the fic.

For the first time since getting back together Mulder and Scully slept in separate rooms.

After their fight, Scully felt hurt and betrayed, not only by Emily – even though she didn’t have a choice, Scully understood that; it was either life or death as she had told them -, but also by Mulder. He was the one who believed in these things and she was the sceptical. He was the one who always dragged her into his crazy theories and cases, and she would smile and play along and, although she wanted to prove him wrong so many times, she would accept the outcome of whatever situation Mulder had gotten themselves into and move on.

Mulder, however, didn’t agree with her in this scenario. He questioned that if they thought that Emily had died and that William had died, then what else was a lie?

One day, out of the blue, Emily shows up at their doorstep alive and well and drops bombshells after bombshells and then confesses that not only is she working for the Cigarette Smoking Man, but also that William, the son he had seen shot to death, was alive and well. She knew where to find him, but she didn’t want to say. Or couldn’t say, he didn’t remember.

Was Emily dead all along? No. Was William dead all along? No. Were we abducted? Probably, although we can’t trust her, Mulder had spat. Is everything that happened in the last 26 years a lie? Most likely. Will we stop being followed by the darkness? Well, no.

Scully grew frustrated and realised that she didn’t hear Emily leave. She wished she had the chance to say goodbye, but Mulder was too harsh with her and their fight got the best of them.

Lily cried and cried and cried. Scully tried soothing her, but nothing worked. The air around the house was tense; Scully was upset, Mulder was furious, and the baby could sense this. Either her parents calmed down or she’d continue crying.

Dinner was uncomfortable. They didn’t look or talk to each other and it was just awkward. Scully finished her bowl of soup and grabbed Mulder’s and took it to the sink, not caring for a little bit if he had finished or not. She was _that_ pissed.

They didn’t say goodnight either. Mulder went to change to his pyjamas and when he went to get a glass of water, he saw that Scully had left a blanket and a pillow on the couch.

Scully cried and cried and cried until she fell asleep.

Xxxxx

The woods were no longer welcoming; they were now dark, cold and eerie. There was something sinister about the situation that made Emily’s heart beat super-fast. At times she’d think that her heart would jump right out of her chest.

Oliver had sent the letter and not William. Emily wanted to kick herself so much after blaming her brother. He had given her the green light on living her life as she pleased, and when she stormed out of the warehouse that night, she felt that he was being honest and true to his word. She wanted to call him desperately, but her hands were tied at the moment. Metaphorically.

Which made her think… how _did_ they find her? CSM was dead, according to William, Mulder and Scully. Therefore, the logical thing is that with CSM dead, his whole operation and whatever things he had going on were dead too, no? Apparently not, because she was standing in front of her terrifying chamber guard.

“I sure hope they didn’t kick you out or anything. It would take the fun out of our plans.” Oliver smiled and pouted at the same time.

Emily tucked her hands deep in her hoodie pockets and took deep breaths, concentrating on the cold air leaving her nostrils and mouth. A brief flashback of her and Sveta locked in a freezing room popped into her mind and she choked up, remembering how they tried to make it fun by pretending they were smoking.

“Aw. By your lack of response I’m thinking they did? Let me guess! It was Mulder, huh?” He asked excitedly, as if he were a child who had won a teddy bear at a claw machine. “Well, that’s a shame. Like I said, it won’t be as fun as I wished it would be. Oh, but it still will be fun.”

Emily looked at everything except his face and spoke in a small voice, “What do you want, Oliver?”

Oliver straightened up and reached out for her hand as he did when she was a frightened locked up kid. Emily looked at his hand in disgust. “I want you to take a walk with me. You know, catch up on things.”

“You and I very well know that we don’t need to catch up. I think you’re already caught up with everything I’ve been doing ever since you returned me.”

“Hmm. You know what, Little Emily? You are right. But let’s go for a walk in the woods anyway. It’s a beautiful night, don’t you think?”

She scanned the dark woods and scoffed. The woods were anything but beautiful tonight and it was freezing. She hugged herself tightly and shivered slightly. She didn’t know if it was just her imagination or if the whole situation was getting to her, but she had never felt so cold before. Guess it’s just these sombre people who radiate coldness, she thought.

Oliver made no attempt to move and kept his hand reached out for Emily’s. She looked at it again and turned her head away from him and focused on a faraway tree as she spoke. “Fine. I’ll walk with you. But I’m not holding your disgusting hand.” Emily started walking, still hugging herself, and she heard Oliver chuckle.

“Well, as long as you’re coming along, whatever you want, Little Emily.”

She hated being called that. It was a nickname she was given by her captors because she was smaller than the other girls her age. They mocked her and it hurt her, but she learned how to turn her weakness into a strength: whenever they called her that she didn’t feel small, nor weak, nor sad. No. She felt strong and hopeful that she would get out of there.

Except that when Oliver started calling her that now, her strength faded and she felt like that small, defenceless child. It was the tone in his voice that made her feel weak. She knew that he was up to no good and she had never felt more scared in her life than that moment.

Xxxxx

William paced back and forth in the warehouse, completely taken aback at Emily’s messages. Something was wrong and he had to do something.

He stopped dead on his tracks as a piercing headache overcame him and he held onto his head for dear life, as if the pain would go away the harder he pressed onto it.

He started to panic as a recognisable wave of anxiety started to arise from his chest. This was very familiar to him, given that he had been having these kind of episodes ever since he was a child, and they had only grown more frequent within the last year.

He collapsed on the floor as he seized and a vision substituted the headache: Emily being dragged through the woods; Emily in a meadow looking at a spaceship; someone standing at the other end of the meadow.

William gained consciousness with a jolt and prayed that Scully had seen the same thing he did. He had to do something and knew that he needed help. If they came for Emily, then they would want him too.

As if he had sat on burning coal, William stood up quickly and grabbed his cell phone and called for help.

Xxxxx

Her cell phone rang furiously and buzzed at the same time on the nightstand. A light sleeper, Scully opened a red, puffy eye and looked around. She was about to curse Mulder, but just as she was opening her mouth, she remembered that her husband was sleeping downstairs.

Groaning, Scully grabbed her phone and answered sleepily. “Hello?”

“Dana?”

Scully sat up, fully awake with eyes wide open. “Oh, my God. William?”

“Dana. Emily. S-she needs your help. You have to help her.” He said anxiously.

“William, what are you saying?” Of all the times Scully thought about talking to her son for the first time, she never imagined that she wouldn’t get the chance to actually speak with him. He was clearly anxious, nervous and speaking in a rush. There was no time for chit-chat, no matter how desperately Scully wanted it.

“Please, Dana. Help her. She’s in the woods. I saw a meadow. Please, help her.”

“Will—” the line cut off and Scully jolted out of bed. She stomped down the stairs and moved next to the couch.

Mulder was sleeping on his side, facing the window. She lowered to his level and started to shake his crossed arms. “Mulder.” She whispered frantically. He replied with a “hmph” and continued his snooze. “Mulder!”

“What, Scully?” He groaned, clearly annoyed, but kept his eyes closed.

Scully rolled her eyes in frustration and spoke. “William just called me.”

That did it. Mulder opened his eyes and looked at her as if a couple of wires in her head had loosen. “What?”

“William called me. He says that Emily is in danger and that we have to help her.” Scully was mimicking William’s tone and spoke in a rush.

Mulder sat up and kept his fists on the couch on each side of his thighs as he looked down and sighed. “Scully, not Emily again.”

“Mulder, shut up and listen to me! Our son just called. _Our_ _daughter_ is in danger. He called and begged me to help her. We _have_ to help her.” Scully’s outburst made Mulder lean back a little and he suddenly had the need of looking at anything but Scully. “Look, either I’m going or you’re going. You choose. But I’m not going to sit here pretending that I don’t care – like you’re trying to make me believe – with the feeling that something’s happening to my daughter.

Scully started for the stairs to change and Mulder sighed. He ran a hand through his face and said, “All right. Where is she?”

Xxxxx

Emily had been walking with Oliver for a while now and ignored his attempts at small talk. She was in no mood for his bullshit and wanted to go back to her life as a wanderer.

“I genuinely want to know, Little Emily. How’ve you been?” He pat her head and she swatted it away and smoothed the part he had touched.

“Don’t call me that.” Emily said between gritted teeth.

“Aw, come on. For old time’s sake?”

Okay. That’s it. “Oliver, cut the crap, please. What the fuck do you want? How’d you find me?” She stopped and looked at him in frustration.

A sinister laughter bubbled from Oliver’s chest and suddenly the woods echoed with his laughter. “You honestly don’t know, huh?” Emily shook her head confused. “You have a little chip right there. We’ve been tracking you ever since you’ve started walking on Earth.” He wiped a tear from the corner of his eye while smiling and pointed to a place below her ear.

She narrowed her eyes incredulously and touched where Oliver’s long finger had lingered a few moments ago, now feeling the tiny, almost phantom scar. “What?”

“Honey, we wouldn’t let anyone return empty handed. Come on. We’re not _that_ kind of assholes.” He laughed again and Emily looked at him as if he were crazy. No, scratch that; he _was_ crazy. “Oh, Little Emily. I’ve missed you.”

Emily lost it. “Don’t call me that!” She jumped at Oliver and pushed her arm back to punch him, only that he anticipated her movements and grabbed her fist before it could come anywhere near his face. He squeezed it hard and started twisting her arm. Emily cried out in pain.

“Listen, you little shit. You’re coming with me and you’re going to do what I say. Otherwise you’re dead. Understand?” He threatened. The moonlight was enough to see that his eyes were now dark, the irises almost disappearing, and the look he had was dark. If Emily felt scared before, she was even more terrified now. She nodded and he let go of his grip.

They stood there panting and Emily’s nightmare popped into her head. The dragging, the hair pulling, the meadow, the spaceship…

She looked at him wide eyed and started to run. Everything was too familiar and she wasn’t surprised if she ran across the little cabin. Her screams filled the woods but she knew it was in vain; she was in the middle of nowhere, who would hear her pleas for help? Mulder and Scully were definitely not looking for her after ruining their lives. William was definitely not looking for her after basically telling him to go to where the sun doesn’t shine. But she screamed anyway. She hoped it was loud enough for someone to hear. Anyone. There’s always hope.

Every now and then she’d look back and see that Oliver was running after her, hot on her heels. Dammit, he was fast. She tried to outrun him but tripped on a tree root, just like in her nightmare.

She felt something pop and her screams of plea didn’t compare to the ones that were coming out from her mouth. The force Oliver had applied on her fist and her arm were nothing compared to the shooting pain in her foot.

Within seconds, Oliver was next to her panting and laughing. “Oh, Little Emily. You honestly thought you were going to get away with it? Earth has made you stupid. Maybe going back to the spaceship will make you brighter.” Emily grabbed her foot and threw her head back, scrunching her face in pain.

“Come on, get up.” Oliver ordered and snapped his fingers in a hurry as he looked around. It appeared as if he was late for something and that put Emily on edge and made her more and more anxious.

“I can’t. I think I broke my ankle or something.” Tears were forming on the corner of her eyes and she looked down at it. She wanted to take her shoe off and examine the damage, to see just how much her foot started to swell, but the pain was so excruciating that the mere thought of moving a hair made her wince.

Oliver shrugged. “As you wish.” He grabbed Emily by the hair and started dragging her through the woods. She started to scream again – pleading for him to stop, crying in pain -, but he wasn’t giving in. He dragged her like a mop and couldn’t care less if she hit a tree. The woods were bumpy with tree roots and Emily was hurting all over, particularly her ankle that shot constant waves of pain.

Everything was playing out just like in her nightmare. It was only a matter of time before they arrived at the meadow.

Xxxxx

Mulder walked into the woods with his flashlight in hand. “Emily!” He yelled, but got no response. “Emily!” Nothing. His flashlight was the only source of light and a small part of him hoped that it was enough for Emily to spot, but the chances of that happening were not favourable.

The noise of rustling leaves made Mulder stop and look around.

A shadow appeared from behind a tree and Mulder took out his gun and walked closer. “Come out of there!” He ordered. The shadow remained in place and Mulder continued walking. “Emily, is that you?”

William came into view with a hand in his pocket and the other scratching the back of his neck. He was looking down at the dirt – almost shyly -,and dragged his right foot from one side to another forming an arc on the floor.

“William?” Mulder lowered his gun and approached his son. They were standing face-to-face and what happened next caught Mulder off-guard.

William hugged him just like Mulder had done a year ago at the motel when he made Erica Price’s and her lackey’s heads explode. Mulder stepped back a little from the impact of the hug and had his hands up behind William’s back, not quite knowing what to do. After a few moments though, he hugged his son back.

“It’s good to see you again, Mulder.” William said with his face pressed on Mulder’s shoulder.

“You too, kid.” Mulder simply replied and smiled as he patted his back. He was so overcome with joy – for finally seeing his son – and fear – for Emily -, that he was speechless. He didn’t know what else to say.

William sniffed and pulled away. He looked around the woods and the father-son moment they had shared seconds ago was over. Panic took over his face and he turned to Mulder.

“Mulder, Emily’s in trouble. Please, help her.” William grabbed Mulder’s shoulders and begged.

“I know, Scully told me. But what kind of trouble? You have to tell me, William.”

“She sent me a text saying that she was homeless again cause she told you all about her, and said something about a letter you read and accused me of leaving it on your doorstep,” William explained in a hurry. Mulder’s heart dropped and his chest felt heavy. What was happening right now to Emily was because of him, and if something happened to her, Scully would never forgive him. Nor would he be able to forgive himself.

William took Mulder’s silence as a sign to continue. “I told her I had no idea what she was talking about and she said I stabbed her in the back. I waited for her to get into contact with me again, but I had a vision of her in trouble. Please, help her.”

Mulder nodded. “I will, but the woods are huge and I’m not sure where to go to. At least do you know where she is?”

Just as William was going to tell Mulder that he had an idea as to where Emily was going, a blood curdling scream was heard that echoed through the woods, sending chills up and down William and Mulder’s back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tumblr: blossom-ofsnow


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Can Mulder and William save Emily?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No beta, so sorry for spelling/grammar mistakes!
> 
> Enjoy!

Growing up, she wasn’t sure she wanted a family of her own or not. Sure, she loved her siblings and her parents, but whenever she thought about her future, babies weren’t present. Until Emily came into her life, that is.

Life had thrown her all kinds of obstacles, and Scully had managed to overcome them in a way no one ever could. An abduction, cancer and the inability to have children of her own had never stopped her from sticking by Mulder’s side for the seek of the truth.

But now it was 26 years since she was assigned to debunk his work, 26 years since she decided to follow him anywhere he went, 26 years of accepting life’s complications, and she didn’t have one, but three children.

As much as she’d like to have them altogether downstairs, laughing at the ridiculous stories Mulder’s telling about their time at the FBI, the situation was different: one child – whom she thought had died, but was actually abducted, and, when returned, looked for them for shelter and safety – had left and was missing in the woods; another child – whom she gave up for adoption because she couldn’t keep him safe, and had also thought had died – was also out in the woods looking for her first-born; and her third child, an unexpected, yet just as loved as her other children, miracle sleeping peacefully in her crib, completely oblivious to the crazy world around her and the situation her family was currently in.

No. She couldn’t bare the thought of losing her children again. She couldn’t and wouldn’t lose her babies again. She had do to something, even if it meant doing it from the comfort of their home.

Just then, a vision of a meadow, a spaceship, Mulder walking towards it, William and an unconscious Emily flashed through her mind. She gripped her head and closed her eyes, almost struggling to breath. When the vision faded, she opened her eyes, loosened the grip on her head and started panting, trying to catch her breath.

Scully looked down at a sleeping Lily, kissed her own index finger and planted it on her chubby cheek. Caressing the smooth skin, she smiled and left the nursery, still trying to recompose.

She had seen Mulder walking towards the spaceship and it made her anxious and nervous. She wasn’t going to relive what had happened 19 years ago. She had to help in some way and she knew who to call.

With determination, Scully walked to her room and grabbed her cell phone. She browsed through her contacts and without hesitation, pressed “call” on the only person who could help her at the moment.

Xxxxx

Emily’s scream had been so blood curling that it sent chills up and down Mulder’s spine, the hairs on the back of his neck standing straighter than ever. He and William looked at each other, their eyes full of fear.

“Go to the meadow!” William yelled. Mulder turned towards the woods, trying to figure out the direction where the scream had come from.

“Which direc-“ Mulder asked as he turned and saw that his son was nowhere to be seen. Just as he had seen him, he had left. Sometimes things are too good to be true and nothing lasts forever, Mulder thought.

Clearly, he had to figure this out all by himself as he had to do in the X-Files. This should be a no-brainer. Then why did he feel as nervous as he had never been? He decided to run straight and hoped that he would find the meadow William told him to go to.

Before Lily was born, he and Scully used to come to the woods all the time for walks, especially during the last stages of her pregnancy to speed things up. He had enjoyed those moments and would always tell Scully how he loved the woods and how he would love to own a little cabin there. She had rolled her eyes and told him that while woods were nice during the day, they would often be spooky at night, to which she was rewarded with a belly laugh. And now, he completely understood what Scully said. Only they weren’t spooky; they were fucking terrifying.

After what felt like forever (his knees definitely felt as if they had been running for two days straight), he reached the meadow. And what he saw made his jaw drop, his eyes widen and the hairs on the back of his neck straighten up once again.

Xxxxx

Emily’s nightmares came true when they reached the meadow. A loud scream came out of her lips, so loud that even she got scared. What looked like a spaceship – the same one she had seen in her dreams – was hovering in the middle of the meadow. She knew at that moment that she was going to be taken for more testing and something told her that this time there would be no returning and definitely no mercy.

“Stand up.” Oliver ordered. Emily was still lying on the ground after being dragged through the woods, and gripping her foot. She didn’t hear him because of the shock she was experiencing, to which Oliver thought it was an act of disobedience. “I said, stand UP!” He grabbed Emily by her arm and yanked her to a standing position, making her scream again in pain as she put pressure on her injured foot.

“Oliver, please. Please, don’t make me go back. You know more than anyone that I’ve been through hell, please.” Emily begged as tears streamed down her face. All of a sudden, she felt a sting on her right cheek and she started to rub it. Oliver had slapped her.

“You will do as I say.” Oliver growled. Before she could say anything, he started to drag her again towards the spaceship, ignoring her pleas.

“Leave her alone!” Mulder emerged from the woods and started to run towards them. Oliver turned abruptly towards him, making Emily scream in pain once again. She felt Oliver smile next to her cheek and whisper, “Perfect timing.”

If it would’ve been any other situation, Emily would’ve ran towards Mulder and begged him for his forgiveness over and over and over again. She would even kiss his feet if she had to and tell him to haul ass. But the circumstances were different, and even though she wanted to run towards her father and hug him and cry on his shoulder like a daughter does when she seeks comfort, she couldn’t.

A deafening noise came from the spaceship and, suddenly, Mulder stopped running. A light came from under it and he looked at it as if he was being hypnotised by it. Like a moth to a flame, Mulder was attracted to the spaceship instantly and, slowly, he started walking towards it. Emily panicked.

“Mulder, no!” William yelled and ran towards him. Mulder barely noticed him; he just looked in his direction and turned his attention back to the intriguing aircraft, walking ever so slowly. “Mulder, stop, please”.

Oliver, on the other hand, smiled wider than before. His grip switched from her arm to her neck, his own arm hugging it so tightly that she struggled to breath.  “Well isn’t this a wonderful turn of events!” He laughed in disbelief. “The boy came here all by himself. Let me tell you something Emily, we didn’t even have to torture you to get you to tell us his hideout. Instead, he came to us. Although, it would’ve been fun for old times sake.”

“Leave her alone! It’s me you want, just take me and let them live in peace once and for all.” William spoke defeated. “What does it take for you to just let them be a family, a real one with no disturbance, no fear, no uncertainty that someone is after them?”

Oliver stared at him, completely unamused and not at all moved at William’s words. William, on the other hand, turned his eyes from Oliver and Emily to Mulder who was getting closer and closer to where he was once taken.

“Dad.” William called with a hint of defeat in his voice. Mulder froze, but didn’t look at him. “Please. Think about Mom.” At the mention of his wife, the love of his life, and William recognising him as his father, Mulder found the strength in himself to turn towards him once again. “Think about Lily, about Emily, about me.” Still, Mulder was frozen in place. It was as if it were keeping him from moving.

“William, please stop talking and go away.” Emily interrupted and William gaped at her. “They don’t want you, it’s me they want, it’s me they need as a guinea pig.” She pleaded while hot, fat, tears continued to fall into Oliver’s hand. “Just go!”

“Actually, it’s both of you we need. Come on, boy. Walk with us. Emily’s got some appointments to get to, and someone’s expecting you.” Oliver nodded towards the spaceship and Emily looked at Mulder. He was still standing in place, only he was now staring at the spaceship in complete fascination, as if it were his first time seeing one, his abduction something that had never happened. It was truly compelling.

William stood in place, glaring at Oliver, but at the same time looking at Emily softly, asking for her forgiveness through just a look. Annoyed, Oliver stomped in his direction, dragging Emily along with him, tightening his grip even more. She started to choke, but he couldn’t care less.

A rustling noise made Oliver stop dead on his tracks and look in its direction, and it was enough for William to sprint and push Mulder away from the hypnotising spaceship. Mulder fell hard on the ground with a grunt and looked at William in confusion, as if he didn’t remember how he had gotten there. The look on his face was enough for William to know that he was back to his normal self again.

“Let go of the girl.” An urgent, deep voice came from the woods and Emily tried turning her head in that direction, but couldn’t because of Oliver’s tight grip.

“Who’s there?” Yelled Oliver.

“I said, let go of the girl. Put your hands up.” John Doggett yelled back as he emerged from behind a tree with his gun pointing at Oliver. Mulder sighed in relief and William felt calmer at the sight of his father’s relaxation.

Mulder’s relief, however, fell short because as soon as he emerged, Oliver took a syringe from his pocket, sticking it on Emily’s neck. She fell instantly to the ground, completely unconscious.

As Mulder and William ran towards her, two shots were fired, but that didn’t matter to them. They didn’t care if those shots were aimed at something or not; they didn’t care if they had killed Oliver or not. They cared that Emily was okay.

Mulder pressed his fingers to Emily’s neck and hang his head down. “She’s still alive, but her pulse is weak. We have to take her to the hospital.” William nodded in shock.

“I’ll help you carry her.” Doggett said. Mulder smiled and patted him on the back.

“Thank you.” William looked at Doggett, tears threatening to fall. “I love my sister, I don’t know what I would’ve done if something had happened to her because of me. So thank you for saving her.”

“Anytime, kid. It’s nice to see you after all these years.” Doggett assured with a wink of his eye.

Mulder picked Emily up and carried her back to the house. William and Doggett walked with him in silence.

As he walked, William turned his head towards the meadow. The spaceship and Oliver were nowhere to be found.

Xxxxx

Everything was dark. Completely dark. She didn’t know if they had finally killed her or if she was unconscious, but the darkness that was surrounding her was darker than ever. And she felt relaxed. Very, very relaxed and not at all in pain.

Was she really dead? She wasn’t quite sure. She had heard people say that they could see a light, and she looked for it. But there was no light. There were just muffled voices and beeping noises that had begun to intrude her peaceful slumber.

“…my fault.” She heard a muffled man’s voice, and from the way it broke, Emily figured that he must be crying.

“No, it’s not. Don’t beat yourself with this, Mulder. You went for her and because of you we have her here.” A woman soothed.

Ever so slowly, the darkness started to fade and she started to gain consciousness. Her pain-free, drugged experience was being taken away from her, replacing it with shooting pains up and down her foot. And then, there was light. A bright, bright light that made her eyes close in an instant and her head pound.

“Oh, my God. Emily? Can you hear me?” Scully sat up in a rush, almost kicking the chair to the ground. Her hand went to her head and she started to caress her daughter’s hair softly and lovingly. The way a mother does.

Emily groaned. “Th-thirsty. Too bright.” She croaked.

“On it.” Mulder said standing up to switch the light off, the only source of light in the room coming from the moon. Emily opened her eyes and sighed in relief, the pounding in her head subsiding a little.

Scully wiped a tear as she handed Emily a glass of water and sat on the edge of the bed. “How are you feeling?”

“It hurts. My foot. And my neck.” She raised her hand up to touch the source of her pain and she felt a bandage on her neck.

“They ran an MRI when you got here and I noticed you had something under your ear. I knew instantly that they had placed a chip to keep track of your whereabouts, but it didn’t look like the one I had, so we removed it.” Scully explained.

“Emily, do you remember what happened?” Mulder spoke from his seat next to her. She turned her head and looked at his pained face.

What _did_ happen? She thought. No matter how hard she tired, nothing came to mind. She had absolutely no idea what she was doing there, all wired up and lying on a hospital bed. For all she knew, she was taken and returned years later injured.

She furrowed her brows and looked at her left leg that was in a cast. “N-no.” She said shaking her head. “What happened to my leg? And why is my head pounding?”

“You were almost abducted again,” Mulder started as he leaned closer to her and sighed. He waited for a reaction from her, but he didn’t get any. Everything was slowly coming back to Emily, and her silence indicated Mulder to go on. “You broke your foot and the man who took you injected a large dose of a powerful sedative on your neck.”

Emily looked at the wall in front of her and her eyes darted from one end to another, trying to put the pieces of what was coming back together.

“The pounding in your head may be caused by the sedative. You were out for days.” Scully added as she held her hand. “If it weren’t for Mulder and William we would’ve lost you.”

Just by mentioning William was enough for Emily’s head to jerk up and look at Mulder. “William. Oh, my God, where is he? Did they take him?” Emily asked frantically, pulling the covers from her legs and trying to get up.

Mulder caught her wrist and gently pulled her back to bed, all the while making sure he didn’t touch the bruises and cuts that decorated her arm. She looked back at him and saw such concern in his eyes that it was impossible to fight him on this. “He’s at home with Lily, Monica and John. He’s fine, don’t worry. Now please, get some rest.”

Emily smiled sadly, furrowing her eyebrows and nodded. She did as told and laid back down, wincing as the several injuries in her body made contact with the bed.

Silence filled the room, but it wasn’t uncomfortable as it had been all those times before. It was more of a sad silence, but bearable. No one knew what to say, or rather they did but didn’t dare say it out loud. Mulder just stared at Scully, and Scully would stare at the floor with her hands tucked in her back pockets, sniffling from time to time.

It was at that moment that Emily decided to study her injuries. Not only was her leg in a cast and a bandage placed on her neck, but she noticed all the bruises and cuts on her arms that Mulder had carefully avoided touching. From the burning sensation on her face, she must have some kind of scratch or another cut. She wanted to join Scully and cry with her, but she wanted to stay strong for them.

“Uh, I’ll go tell the doctor that you’re awake.” Scully finally broke the silence and smiled at Emily. She looked at Emily but quickly switched to Mulder when Emily met her eyes.

“Okay. I’ll stay here.” Mulder replied. Scully nodded and smoothed Emily’s hair, kissing her on the head, her lips lingering there for a few moments. Fresh tears fell on her hair and she smoothed it again.

“Right.” She said sniffling and left.

“Mulder, I’m so sorry.” Emily blurted out as soon as Scully closed the door. She needed him to know that she never meant things to go the way they did. She didn’t want for them to find out about her the way they did. He was so upset and so angry at her that she needed to clear things out with him.

Mulder, however, seemed taken aback by her apology. His eyebrows went up in confusion for a brief moment before realisation hit him.

He felt like a complete asshole. Like all of this was his fault. He got mad at her. He kicked her out. He was the reason why she left for the woods and almost got abducted again. He almost got himself as well as William abducted too. If it weren’t for Doggett (thank God Scully called him), all three of them would probably be God knows where, locked in chambers – as Emily described – waiting for the next test.

Tears he had been holding back started to fall and Emily felt the need to go to him and comfort him with a hug (she was told she gave the best hugs), but almost leaving the bed left her sore and she felt as if she could barely move.

He leaned forward and he rested his elbows on his knees, the heels of his hands pressing into his eyes. “Emily, I’m so sorry. This is all my fault, I shouldn’t have thrown you out knowing that you had no where to go. I should’ve given you a chance to explain yourself, but we had been lied to so many times and we had gone through so much that I didn’t want to go through the same all over again. I didn’t want to put Scully or Lily through that.” He said between sobs.

“Mulder, no. Really, don’t blame yourself. I should’ve told you the truth from the beginning, I should’ve told you about William and about the deal I had made with _them_. That would’ve been the right way to earn your trust, but I screwed up and betrayed it.”

Mulder reached for her hand and smoothed a bruise that was just starting to appear. “I really don’t blame you, Emily. Honestly. And neither does Scully. If it weren’t for her, I don’t think you would be with us.” He smiled at her and she retaliated. “And we would be honoured if you came back and stayed with us. Permanently.”

Emily’s smile grew and she looked at Mulder’s hand caressing hers. “I don’t know. I’m a pretty busy girl, my friends would miss living with me.”

Mulder chuckled and raised his eyebrows. “I’m sure your friends will understand.”

“Yeah. I’m sure they will.”

“You honestly don’t remember anything?” Mulder asked.

Emily closed her eyes and pursed her lips, thinking hard. “I remember Oliver dragging me through the woods and suddenly we were in a meadow, just like the one I’d seen in my nightmares. I remember you and William and the spaceship. I think there was another man. You were attracted to the light that was coming from the spaceship, you kept walking to it. That’s the last thing I remember.”

Mulder furrowed his eyebrows and nodded. “That’s pretty much it.” Emily opened her eyes and looked at Mulder. He ended the memory with “and then you were out like a light.”

Xxxxx

Emily was at the hospital for another week before she got to go back home. Home. It felt weird thinking about it. She never thought she’d even come close to having a home. To her, the only concept of ‘home’ she had was being a guinea pig in some government aircraft.

William would visit her. The first time he did, they hugged and cried in each other’s arms, finally releasing the tension, sadness and stress that had been bottled up in their chests. He brought a teddy bear with him and she felt like crying at the sweet gesture, but ultimately decided that she had had enough crying for the day. Or at least for the current visitation.

Lily had visited her too. When her Scully told her she would be going home for a while and would bring Lily with her, Emily was a little afraid that her sister wasn’t going to recognise her anymore after not seeing her for a while. But she was wrong. As soon as they entered her room, Lily started to bounce on Scully’s arms, smiling and clapping at the sight of Emily, almost dropping her pacifier. Scully placed her on the bed between Emily’s legs, but quickly changed her onto her lap when she accidentally clapped Emily’s bad foot.

Monica and Doggett were no strangers either, although they visited less. Emily couldn’t stop thanking Doggett when he first visited her, and every time she thanked him, he’d patiently say that he’d do anything for the Mulder-Scully household, that she didn’t have to thank him.

The doctor ordered bed rest and a little physical therapy for Emily, but other than that she was given the all clear to go home. Scully had spent the day before her discharge cleaning Mulder’s office and putting sheets and blankets on the pull out couch, decorating it with throw pillows and the teddy bear William had given her, trying to make it as homey as possible.

William had decided to stay with them, although they were not sure if it was permanently as well. He hadn’t said anything and Mulder and Scully were afraid to ask, not wanting to spook him and find him gone the next morning.

One night during dinner, a conversation about their future arose.

“I’ve made a decision.” William suddenly said as he set down his fork and set his hands on the sides of his plate.

Mulder and Scully looked at each other expectantly, hoping that he’d say he’d stay with them. They didn’t need to say the words out loud. Just by sharing a look they knew that the other was thinking the same thing.

Emily kept her eyes on the food and, after William got no answer, said without looking up, “Are you going to say something or do we have to guess?”

William rolled his eyes and playfully glared at her. Emily met his eyes and smiled. “I’m going to finish school and go to college.”

Mulder and Scully blinked, surprised. “That’s wonderful, William.” Scully finally said after struggling to find the words.

William. He hadn’t gotten used to his old name, but he didn’t mind being called that. In fact, he liked that name better than the one his adoptive parents gave him, but he wouldn’t say that to his biological parents just yet.

“So, what are you going to do in college?” Asked Mulder.

William shrugged. “I don’t know. Probably something relating to art? I have a notebook with drawings and stuff from my childhood. They suck, but I’ve gotten better in time.” Scully smiled at this and at the memory of the beautiful drawings she had seen in a journal when they were at his old home the previous year when they thought he had died.

“Maybe you can do a family portrait.” Emily teased.

“Ha, ha. Maybe I will. Maybe I’ll paint you with a big zit on your forehead, just like the one that’s coming out right about now.” William teased back as he touched the invisible zit.

“Shut up.” Emily mumbled and returned her attention to the food, her fear of him clearly gone and now replaced for love.

Mulder and Scully looked at each other and smiled. Ever since they came back home, their children had bonded and began teasing each other like siblings do. He knew how to press her buttons, she knew how to press his.

Scully thought she had lost her daughter, who Mulder now considered to be his as well. Both of them thought they had lost their son.

Now both of them amused themselves with the sight of their children’s banter and teasing and bonding. Something they thought they never had, that they thought had been taken away and would never get back. Good things comes for those who wait.

“So, who wants to hear about The Fluke?” Mulder asked with enthusiasm and was met with groans. Even from Lily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tumblr: blossom-ofsnow


	11. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What's happened since Emily's almost abduction?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Final chapter! Thank you all so, so much for reading this and going along with me on this journey. If it weren't for your motivation, I probably wouldn't have finished this. Thank you for the comments, the kudos, and, of course, your support!
> 
> I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> No beta, so sorry for spelling/grammar mistakes.

_November 22 nd, 2019_

Emily looked at herself in the bathroom mirror and thought about how her life had changed in the last year. All this time she had been living as a nomad, and now she finally felt at home. She made amends with her brother and she had a brand new baby sister – the little Nugget, as she liked to call her -, siblings she had always wished for, that had appeared in her dreams, but could never find the enough amount of hope to actually believe that she would meet them someday. She found her parents, who welcomed her and loved her through thick and thin, who took care of her when she got back from the hospital and helped with her physical therapy and when she got her appendix removed three months ago. In all, she had what she longed for: a family.

Getting closer to the mirror, she examined her new looks. Her brown hair was long gone, being replaced by her original blonde. Scully had gone with her to the hairdresser’s and held her hand when the brown hair product started to rinse out. It was funny, she thought, that she felt nervous and somewhat sad to be leaving behind one thing that she had disliked about her knew identity, something that had been a part of her for so long which she associated to a dark time in her life.

She ran a hand through her freshly washed hair and recalled how Scully suggested bangs when the hairdresser asked her what sort of haircut she wanted, but Emily immediately shot her down. She hated those bangs ever since she was a kid, and she wasn’t going to get bangs as an adult if she had a choice. Instead, she settled for a bob that had since grown to her shoulders.

Sometimes she’d worry that all of this was some kind of sick dream, a mind game, and that she’d suddenly wake up and find herself alone in some place she had never stayed long enough to call home. Absentmindedly, she would pinch her arms, her hands, her thighs – one time she punched herself in the face –, and she wouldn’t stop until her entire body ached, her skin red. That feeling, however, had started to slowly disappear with each passing day.

“Emily! People will be arriving shortly, are you almost done in there?” Mulder yelled from the bottom of the stairs.

“Yeah, Dad. I’ll be right out!” She called out. Dad. It felt good saying that. She loved saying that. The first time that word came out of her lips, she hadn’t realised it until she noticed Mulder staring at her with a surprised look on his face. They had been playing Pictionary and, when she saw Mulder changing cards, she gasped, “Dad, you are such a cheater!” She laughed and shook her head, reaching for her glass of coke. Mulder let out a bearably audible whimper and tears started to block his view. Scully simply smiled.

Returning back to the present, she gripped her towel tightly around her and left for her bedroom.

Given that William had decided to stay, even though he would leave for a few days once in a blue moon, she had to come up with a creative solution as to where she would sleep. During her physical therapy, Scully had prepared Mulder’s office for her, but she would feel claustrophobic once in a while and she didn’t feel as if it was her own space. So, she suggested revamping the attic into a bedroom, or at least a good portion of it. They agreed almost instantly and Scully took Emily to pick out the furniture while Mulder and William cleared out the attic.

Now, she looked at her room – _her room_ -, and she felt proud of herself. She had a knack for interior design that she didn’t know she had. Almost all of the furniture was picked out by her: the rustic grey chests, the brown desk, white nightstand with a matching dresser and wardrobe, and the bed placed next to the wall right below the window that was big enough to let the right amount of sunlight in. Scully picked out the all-white linens and greyish throw pillows.

On this warm, sunny November day, she dressed herself in the clothes that William gave her for her birthday: a pair of dark jeans and a light blue shirt, finishing her look with white sneakers. People were coming over to celebrate her 25th birthday and she wanted to look nice, yet she couldn’t shake the nervousness off.

When she left the attic, she noticed that William’s bedroom door was still closed. Surely, he’s sprawled on his bed snoring, Emily thought. He had sneaked out of the house late at night and gotten back at the early hours of the morning.

Lily was sitting on her high chair while Scully fed her some mashed bananas, and squealed at the sight of her big sister. “Mee-mee!”

Scully turned and put the plate down, Lily’s chubby hand finding the mashed bananas immediately and shoving the fruit in her mouth. “Happy birthday, sweetheart.” She hugged her and rubbed her back.

“Thanks, Mom.” Emily smiled as she let go of the embrace. “Uh, Mom? I think you have a little situation with Lily over there…” She said pointing towards her sister who was covered from head to toe in mashed bananas.

“Lily! I just bathed you, sweetie.” Scully whined, picking her up. Emily giggled and reached out her arms for her, but Scully shook her head. She walked over to the sink and stripped her off her onesie, leaving her only in her diapers. Scully placed Lily on one side of the sink while she turned on the faucet on the other side.

“I have pancake batter ready in the fridge, I’ll just wash Lily off and make some for you.” Scully said with her back to Emily.

“Chocolate chip?”

This time, Scully turned her head over her shoulder and smiled. “Of course. Help yourself with some coffee, I just made it.”

As Emily started for the coffee pot, Mulder walked in smelling of coal. “Grill’s starting to heat. Ooh, are we making pancakes?” He rubbed his hands.

“Yeah, after Mom finishes with Lily. We’ve got a little mashed banana’s situation going on.” Emily said.

“Again? Scully, I’ve told you not to leave the plates on the high chair, she’ll just throw them on the floor or on herself.” Mulder playfully scolded. Scully simply chuckled and shook her head.

“How’s everything outside, Mulder?” Scully asked as she bathed Lily.

“Good, good. It’ll be ready by the time everyone gets here.” Mulder walked in to the kitchen and hugged Emily by her shoulders, giving her a kiss on her temple. “Happy birthday, daughter.”

“Thank you, father.” Emily smiled.

“So, 25 years-old. Someone’s approaching her thirties, huh? You know you’re a quarter of a century old?” Mulder teased as he made himself a cup of coffee.

Emily’s smile turned into a frown. A few weeks before, she had mentioned that getting closer to her thirties made her sad because usually people enjoyed their twenties and had accomplished things by the time they’re thirty: college, trips, maybe even start a family. But she didn’t enjoy much of her twenties. So now, every time the subject about her age came up, she couldn’t help but feel a little sad inside. When this happened, Mulder tried to lighten the mood by telling jokes – something she figured out she inherited from him -, but they almost never worked.

Upon the awkward silence, Scully turned around as she had an idea. “Presents! Want to see what we got you, Em?” She clapped her hands in excitement.

Emily offered back a weak smile. “Sure.”

“Mulder? Help me, please?” Scully asked as she walked passed him. He got up and followed her to their bedroom.

“Why, why would you bring that up when you know it upsets her? And on her birthday, no less.” She said with her hands on her hips.

“Sorry, Scully. I thought she got past it. I’ll apologise to her later, I didn’t realise that it still made her sad. I’m sorry.” He slumped his shoulders and looked at her with his puppy eyes. He truly looked like a defeated puppy, and Scully couldn’t resist it.

She dropped her hands and sighed. “It’s okay, but you shouldn’t apologise to me. Now go wake up your son, we got presents to give.”

Xxxx

Everyone was outside gathered around the table: Mulder, Scully, William, Emily, Doggett, Monica and Skinner – who was now walking with the help of a cane. Lily sat on Emily’s lap, playing with strands of her hair and the golden cross hanging on her neck. William and Mulder had helped with the food, setting the plates of hot dogs, burgers, bowls of salad that Scully had prepared with Emily’s help, and the drinks on the table.

While everyone helped themselves, Scully looked around. This time last year, it was just her, Mulder and Lily against the world living at the house. She was certain that William was alive, but still needed some kind of confirmation, even though she knew it in her heart. And now, not only did she have her confirmation, but she also had her son living under the same roof as her. To make things better, the daughter she thought was dead, the daughter whose funeral she had gone to, had shown up one day with hard proof that everything told to them had been a lie. Mulder and Scully were hers and William’s parents, not projects who Scully bore.

She also reminisced on the last few months. The doctors had removed Emily’s chip, but just to make sure, Emily had an MRI last month to see if everything was fine, which, luckily, it was. She remembered that night when Emily came into their bedroom, holding her stomach and crying, saying that she couldn’t bare the pain and how scared they were that something was seriously wrong, only to be proven otherwise by the doctors telling them it was just her appendix.

They had come a long way since Emily’s almost abduction – and Mulder’s for that matter – and she couldn’t help but smile and feel grateful about how her life had turned out.

Pleasantries and compliments of the food flew left and right. Nobody seemed to be having a bad time, nobody seemed bored. And that was the only thing that mattered to Emily.

“Excuse me. I’d like to say something, if I could get your attention.” Mulder said as he stood up holding a glass. “Emily. You’ve been a true surprise to us, not only now, but when you were a kid as well. And what a nice surprise it was. We loved you when your were with us, we missed you when you were gone, and we loved you even more when you came back. We had our differences, of course. But at the end of the day, Scully and I could not have been happier than to have you back home with us. Happy birthday, sweetheart.” Mulder smiled and lift his glass up. Their guests smiled back, wished her a happy birthday as well and took a sip of their drinks.

As Mulder sat down, Emily whispered a thank you and an I love you. And he thought _he_ had to give her a present.

Xxxx

At around 6pm, everyone left. William slumped on the couch and turned on the football game, Mulder joining him in a heartbeat. Scully went to put Lily down for her nap and Emily started to put the leftovers in the fridge.

“Did you have a nice birthday, Em?” Scully asked as she walked into the kitchen. “Leave everything on the table, I’ll clean this up later. You go sit down.” She said as Emily was grabbing the plate with half a chocolate cake she and Scully had baked.

“It was amazing. Thank you, so much.” Emily smiled, walking over to the couch.

“Yeah, I had a nice time. Thanks, Mom.” William chimed and smirked. Emily slapped him on the knee and he moved to the end of the couch, letting her sit in the middle .

“Shut up, idiot. It’s not your birthday, and nobody asked you.”

Scully rolled her eyes and walked towards her family, sitting on the armrest.

“So, I assume you’ll be breaking in those new books we got you tonight, am I right?” Mulder asked with his eyes glued to the TV.

Emily had grown fond of Scully’s academic books, and they had given her a collection of books for her to expand her knowledge. “Maybe. If it’s not today, it’s tomorrow though.” She lacked the education William had had growing up, and she found that learning from Scully’s books – whether it was about biology, history or geography – were the next best thing she had.

“Nerd.” William said. Emily ignored him, knowing perfectly well that he’d be borrowing them for his mid-terms and exams. He decided to finish high school and had just started looking at Universities, although he wasn’t exactly sure as to where to apply or what courses he wanted to take.

“Thank you, everyone, for the presents. William, I didn’t know you had such good taste in clothing. Or is it just women’s clothes? Cause you dress like shit.”

William poked Emily on her side, causing her to jump and yelp. Automatically, she responded with a slap on his arm and he grabbed the sore spot and yelled an ‘ow.’

“That’s enough, children.” Mulder ordered in his serious Dad voice that made Scully weak in the knees.

The four of them sat watching TV – Scully had changed the channel and they were now watching a romantic comedy -, and Emily felt overwhelmed with emotion, so much so that she thought she was going to cry. She played in her head over and over again Mulder’s speech and waves of love would drown her.

Memories of the past few months started to replay as well: how different everything has been. She never knew the loving touch of a mother’s hand until Scully stroke her hair when she’d have nightmares the first few months. She never knew the love and patience of a father until Mulder took her shopping and she couldn’t decide if she wanted the blue dress or the white crop top with the matching trousers (Mulder said he liked both, but was relieved when she ultimately decided to go for the dress. The crop top showed a little too much skin.) She never knew the love and protection of a sibling until William saved her, nor did she know the annoyance of having a sibling until they started to tease each other and push their buttons. With Lily it was different. She was a baby and she absolutely loved her big sister. When she said her name – or tried to say her name – Emily grabbed her and spun her around the room while Mulder and Scully watched in adoration.

Right now, she glanced between her parents and her brother and she smiled to herself. “Hey, Dad?” She whispered, leaning towards him, her eyes not leaving the TV.

“Yes?”

“Thank you for your words earlier. They mean a lot.”

Mulder turned to look at her and gave her a kiss on the forehead. “Well, I meant every single one of them, Em. You’re more than welcome.” He smiled.

“Okay, I want to say something.” Emily announced after a few moments as she stood up and turned the TV off.

“Hey! What are you doing?” Protested William. Scully shushed him.

“It’s been a wild year. With ups and downs, happy moments, sad moments, fearful moments. The day I showed up on your doorstep I didn’t know what my future was going to be. I didn’t know if you were going to accept me, I didn’t know if I was going to get abducted; I hated William – I still do, by the way –“ Emily clarified and she was responded with chuckles from everyone, “but everything has changed now. I finally feel safe. I finally feel as if I have a home with a family who loves me for who I am, not for what I’m useful for.

“I remember as a three year-old when Mom sat on the floor with me, watching me draw a potato, and introduced me to Mulder. I was shy and I just smiled at him, but to this day I remember thinking ‘they’re so pretty together, maybe I can go with them’,” Mulder and Scully looked at each other with a mixture of surprise and sadness at the memory.

“All my life I’ve been afraid. But now I’m not. And I have all of you to thank. Even you William. Because if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be here. I wouldn’t be with the pretty couple I had wished to go home with. I love you all, so much.” Barely visible tears had started to fall Emily’s cheeks. Meanwhile, Scully couldn’t stop sniffling and Mulder had wiped a tear or two. William, on the other hand, simply stood up and hugged his sister.

Mulder and Scully joined them in a group hug that had to be broken when Emily announced that they were suffocating her.

They sat back on the couch and Emily rested her head on her father’s shoulder. As she closed her eyes, she smiled and said to her inner self in disbelief, “I came home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tumblr: blossom-ofsnow


End file.
